A Metropolitan Police Sergeant who struggled with mental ill-health after the birth of her son has spearheaded a new project to help Met officers in similar situations access medical help.
Sgt Jennifer Sharpling found that there wasn’t enough support and understanding from the force when she was a new mother. This led to her setting up Blue Minds, a peer support network to help fellow Met officers, referring them to medical intervention if necessary. Jennifer has also taken on the role of national lead for perinatal mental health in policing.
One in five women and one in 10 men experience perinatal mental health problems in the UK, and it is the leading cause of death for women in the first year post-birth, so Jennifer said the peer support group “was absolutely needed”.
Blue Minds has now teamed up with NHS Oxleas perinatal mental health team to launch a pilot project to enable officers and staff living in the London boroughs of Bexley, Greenwich and Bromley to access mental health support during the perinatal period – which covers pregnancy up until their child is a year old.
In this project, which was launched on 2 October, Blue Minds will be able to refer women directly to NHS Oxleas rather than having to signpost them through the usual route of the GP, which can cause delays to them accessing the service. NHS Oxleas will then provide specialist assessment, treatment, support and advice to ensure officers stay as well as possible through the perinatal period.
Jennifer said: “Blue Minds came about because of my own experiences and my desperate desire for no one in policing to ever feel as isolated as I did while going through it.
“I have been blessed to work with my team – DI Emma Featherstone, PS Sarah Naughton, DC Kate Collins and PC Stacey Hussey – who have their own personal experiences of navigating their way through motherhood and the challenges that can bring, along with suffering from perinatal mental health conditions. They are incredible women, who work off a desire to help those suffering in the workplace and support this work on top of demanding work roles as police officers and family commitments.
“The NHS and policing are so intertwined that it makes sense for us to join together where we can. This pilot is a dream come true and both sides are very excited about working together and then extending this Met-wide and, if successful, nationally.”
Other perinatal mental health peer support networks are now being set up in forces nationwide, from Kent to Northumbria, Jennifer said. She said: “We have a chat group where we regularly come together to share our experiences and our ideas – it is really collaborative and warm working together as a team.”
Jennifer and her team have received training on mental ill-health symptoms, triggers, red flags and the referral process from Oxleas perinatal consultant and clinical lead Dr Sushma Sundaresh, and team manager Leanne Kalemaj.
Dr Sundaresh said: “I am excited to be involved and piloting this novel project with the Met Police. The aim is to increase awareness of perinatal mental illness; for women and families to get the right help at the right time; and ensure the care is accessible to those who need it. Blue Minds have an amazing team and the power of peer support is inspiring for professionals and services.”
To find out more, contact Blue Minds via HRMailbox-.BlueMindsPeerSupport@met.police.uk
