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Oklahoma City
OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma’s first perinatal behavioral health clinic is helping to fill a significant gap in local maternity care, guiding patients through the unique mental health needs of pregnancy, childbirth and the first year with a new baby.
Dr. Kalee Woody and other Mercy caregivers officially opened Mercy Clinic Perinatal Behavioral Health – Oklahoma City McAuley Blvd. on Monday with a blessing and ribbon cutting. Dr. Woody is Oklahoma’s first psychiatrist dedicated full-time to behavioral health during the perinatal period, which starts with attempting pregnancy or becoming pregnant and extends through the first year after birth.
Mental health conditions are the leading cause of pregnancy-related deaths in the U.S., according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.
“Advocating for women and being their voice during such an important time in their lives is how we help them become the best mothers they can be,” said Dr. Woody.
“Whether that’s preparing before pregnancy to manage medications, navigating mental health issues that come up during pregnancy or treatment for postpartum depression, we’re here to provide options and treatment plans that help mothers thrive," she continued. "The brain is another organ in your body that undergoes so many changes surrounding pregnancy, and we want parents to know they can come to us for help.”
About Perinatal Behavioral Health
Perinatal behavioral health assessments can begin before pregnancy. Mothers-to-be with mental health issues, addiction-related concerns and certain medications can seek guidance and formulate a pregnancy mental health plan with the care team.
Pregnancy comes with a wave of changes to hormones and mental health that are less visible than the physical changes that occur as the baby grows. Existing mental health or addiction issues with previously predictable effects can change and new ones arise, but a perinatal behavioral health team has expertise and experience to help mothers and their partners navigate them.
The postpartum period in the first year after birth often comes with some of a mother’s most intense mental health challenges, with drastic hormonal and physical changes coinciding with the demands of caring for an infant. About three in four pregnancy-related deaths occur after the day of delivery, and the vast majority are preventable, according to CDC data.
Dr. Woody is accepting new patients at the clinic, which is located in Suite 410 at 4205 McAuley Blvd. on the Mercy Hospital Oklahoma City campus. Call 405-757-3720 to schedule an appointment.
Well-Rounded Maternal Health Care
Maternity care is about much more than labor and delivery. Perinatal behavioral health is only one service mothers and families need to navigate healthy family planning, pregnancies, labor plans, delivery and early parenthood.
Mercy’s Love Family Women’s Center, listed among the nation’s best maternity hospitals and the top-ranked in Oklahoma City, provides comprehensive care to mothers and mothers-to-be, plus resources for their families.
Maternity services include pelvic floor therapy, breastfeeding support and dietitians. Mercy’s Love Family Women’s Center also has Oklahoma’s first obstetrics emergency department and the state’s first hospital-based midwifery birthing center, plus 15 newly built labor and delivery rooms and 47 postpartum rooms for recovery.
