Maternal mental health conditions are the most common complication of pregnancy and birth in the United States, according to the Maternal Mental Health Leadership Alliance. Yet approximately 75 percent of perinatal women who are diagnosed with depression do not receive any treatment.
Leaders at association member Woman’s Hospital, in Baton Rouge, La., understood firsthand those barriers to care. They often referred perinatal patients in need of psychiatric attention to other facilities, where their obstetric needs were not a primary focus. Many of these facilities also don’t allow visits, deterring many postpartum patients from receiving care because they didn’t want to be away from their babies.
“It’s very, very hard for a postpartum mom to be away from baby,” says Kelly Cannon, MD, director of inpatient perinatal psychiatry. “It’s hard for them to concentrate on their own mental health [when] all they’re thinking is, ‘I need to get back to my baby.’”
One in eight new mothers report experiencing symptoms of postpartum depression in the year after childbirth. Woman’s Hospital is the largest single-hospital delivery service in Louisiana, and providers knew something had to change to ensure continuity of obstetric care for inpatient psychiatric patients.

In September 2024, the hospital opened its perinatal mental health unit, Louisiana’s first inpatient mental health unit solely dedicated to serving pregnant patients and patients up to one year postpartum. Providers trained in grief counseling also support patients who have experienced miscarriage or fetal loss.
“[The unit] was really designed to be able to bridge that gap in care,” Cannon says.
Featuring two group rooms, a consultation room, and an examination room, the 10-bed unit is staffed by a comprehensive care team of psychiatrists, nurses trained in both obstetric and psychiatric care, psychologists, social workers, nurse practitioners, specialty-trained mental health technicians, and lactation consultants. OB-GYNs and maternal-fetal medicine physicians also are available onsite.
“Because it’s a small unit, we can really tailor the therapeutic needs to the patient’s needs. We are able to design groups, individual sessions, recreational activities to [meet] the patient’s needs,” Cannon explains.
“We’re able to do certain activities that you can’t do in other psychiatric facilities as much, like yoga [and] meditation.”
Unlike other psychiatric facilities, where visiting is limited, the perinatal mental health unit encourages visits from patients’ families and has created space for new mothers to connect with their babies. Patients have about two hours each afternoon to receive visits, which Cannon says is critical to improving patient mental health.
“They’ve loved the fact that they’ve been able to have the babies come and visit them, so they didn’t have that guilt of being away from their families,” Cannon says.
Private rooms are built with patient comfort in mind and include a bathroom, nightstand, television, desk, artwork, and rocking chair.

“We really wanted patients to have their own sanctuary space to be able to relax and recuperate,” Cannon says.
The unit also has an outdoor space that allows patients to enjoy fresh air and sunshine.
To be admitted to the hospital, patients can be referred by a health care provider.
“We’re already getting patients from across the state that are coming to get care, and a lot of them are coming voluntarily and saying, ‘I want help, I need help,’” Cannon says. “That’s just been so great that patients are reaching out to get help and care. It shows you that the need is absolutely there.”
Now, the unit only accepts patients 18 years old and older, but Cannon says she hopes the unit expands in the future to care for adolescents.
“The message we’ve been giving out to patients is that there is hope, there is help, and there is healing,” Cannon says. “That is why we’re here.”