Legal and Ethical Dilemmas and Perinatal Mental Health

The field of perinatal mental health may present clinicians with unique legal and ethical dilemmas with an abundance of grey areas to traverse. Concerns about parent, infant and child safety are keenly present for providers supporting families on their reproductive journey. Additionally, ethical dilemmas may arise as clinicians navigate providing equitable care with cultural humility while meeting legal and ethical standards of licensure governing boards.

This 3-part, 3-day continuing education workshop series pairs legal and clinical voices in conversation to help us problem solve these complex and ever-evolving challenges. Topics include: promoting safe boundaries, child abuse and neglect reporting, managing high risk cases and practice risk management, and implicit bias.

June 3, 2021 – 6-8pm PST

The first workshop, “When Criminal Justice Meets Perinatal Mental Health,” brings expert insight from cases of perinatal psychosis and addresses legal responsibilities when working with individuals at risk for committing suicide, infanticide, or other forms of harm to self or other.

June 10, 2021 – 6-8pm PST

The second workshop, “Perinatal Mental Health and the Child Welfare System,” will clarify for clinicians the realities of navigating the child welfare system through an understanding of the systematic process, including an emphasis on the role of the mandated reporter and the impact on the family.

June 17, 2021 – 6-8pm PST

In the final workshop, “Reimagining Ethics in a Decolonized Mental Health Ecosystem,” legal and clinical changemakers will discuss how the mental and medical systems rooted in a history of systemic racism contribute to ethical dilemmas in perinatal mental health care. This conversation reflects one step in the process of striving to co-create a decolonized world – a process in which we give ourselves permission to re-imagine legal and ethical codes rooted in equity and love, and that center the lived experiences of marginalized communities.

Please join us for what is sure to be an informative, interactive and practice transforming series! Register for individual workshops for $40 each or all three workshops at the discounted rate of $100. The full workshop agenda and brochure is forthcoming.