New Survey Reveals Need to Improve Maternal Mental Health Planning

Approximately 1 in 8 mothers in the United States report experiencing symptoms of PPD each year. A new survey announced by HealthyWomen, sponsored by Sage Therapeutics, Inc., reveals the crucial need for maternal mental health planning and the opportunity for healthcare providers to support women in this process. Dr. Kristina Deligiannidis, MD, Director, Women’s Behavioral Health at Zucker Hillside Hospital, Northwell Health; Associate Professor of Psychiatry and OBGYN, Zucker School of Medicine, discusses ways HCPs can close this gap, and help prepare moms and their support systems. Dr. Deligiannidis also shares key findings from the survey and a new program called Check On Mom. 

Kristina Deligiannidis, MD, completed her undergraduate degrees in biology and psychology at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. As a recipient of predoctoral intramural research training awards, she trained in molecular neuroendocrinology research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Dr. Deligiannidis completed additional research training at the NIH during medical school and residency in behavioral endocrinology and experimental therapeutics at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). She received her medical degree from and completed her psychiatry residency and chief residency in psychopharmacology research at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. After residency, she completed a visiting fellowship and further training in multimodal neuroimaging at the Massachusetts General Hospital/Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging.

Dr. Deligiannidis joined faculty at Zucker Hillside Hospital, the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research and the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell in September 2016. She is board certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology and currently serves as the director of women’s behavioral health at Zucker Hillside Hospital. As a reproductive psychiatrist, she has expertise in treating women with mood and anxiety disorders linked to the menstrual cycle, pregnancy/postpartum and perimenopause.

Over the past 12 years, Dr. Deligiannidis has become a national leader in the field of perinatal depression and novel therapeutics research. Her research program includes a focus in psychoneuroendocrinology, particularly neurosteroids and hormones, and neuroimaging in women’s behavioral health. She has authored more than 50 peer-reviewed articles plus several textbook chapters and has given more than 170 oral/scientific presentations. Dr. Deligiannidis has received federal, foundation and industry research funding, including prestigious NIH K23 and R01 grants. Her research has earned awards and been covered by major media outlets including CNN, the Associated Press, National Public Radio, Boston Globe, Boston ABC News, Boston CBS News, CBS-New York, ABC-New York, Newsday and others.

Dr. Deligiannidis actively contributes to national scientific committees and gives scientific presentations nationally and internationally. She is an associate member of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP), a member of the Society of Biological Psychiatry (SOBP), the American Society of Clinical Psychopharmacology (ASCP) and the Marcé Society of North America (perinatal mental health). She serves as a reviewer on more than 20 scientific journals on the national ASCP board of directors and the SOBP council, as well as on the Advisory Board/Editorial Board for the journals Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica and Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology. She actively serves as a federal grant reviewer for the Center for Scientific Review at NIH.

Locally, she serves on steering committees in both the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology and the Department of Psychiatry at Long Island Jewish Medical Center, Zucker Hillside Hospital and the Katz Institute for Women’s Health on Long Island. She additionally serves on the faculty council at the Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell. She is a sought-out educator and mentor to medical students, nurse practitioner students, residents, fellows and faculty across Northwell Health and at its medicine and nursing schools.