Quiz 3: Making referrals for maternal mental illness

Please choose the one, most correct answer to each question or statement.

1. What is a referral?
   • Sending a patient to someone else because you find her irritating
   • Sending a patient’s blood samples to the lab for testing
   • Recommending and sending someone for specialised services
   • Recommending a healthy diet and adequate rest during pregnancy
2. Which of the following would you refer a depressed mother to in order to help with her emotional problems?
   • The taxi rank so that she can get a lift home
   • A church group that provides food parcels
   • Maintenance court
   • A counsellor
3. When would you refer a mother to a community mental health nurse?
   • When she has trouble with breastfeeding
   • When she has plans for suicide
   • When her Caesarean section stitches are infected
   • When she is carrying twins
4. When would you refer a mother to a social worker?
   • When her problem is related to social issues like housing
   • When her social life is preventing her from getting enough rest
   • When her work is not letting her get enough rest
   • When all she wants to do is rest all day
5. When does a mother need emergency mental health care?
   • She is in active labour but not progressing
   • She has thoughts of harming herself and the baby
   • She is no longer interested in combing her hair or dressing nicely
   • She tells you that she feels miserable and irritable all the time
6. What local non-governmental resources may be available to help pregnant women with their emotional problems?
   • Library where a mother can read about common problems
   • Bus stop where she can speak to other people
   • Community organisation that offers counselling
   • Social grant
7. Who can go to the Maintenance Court?
   • Only the mother of a child
   • Only the father of a child
   • Only a child who is not being looked after by the parents
   • Any caregiver that a child is living with if the child is not being supported by a parent
8. Why do you want to make a successful referral?
   • To make best use of your time and that of the referral service
   • To make the women stop being a nuisance at the facility
   • To make the women’s problems somebody else’s
   • To give the referral service some work
9. What is the best way to make an effective referral?
   • Tell the woman where the organisation has its offices
   • Write the name of the organisation on a piece of paper
   • Write a referral letter and give it to the woman to take with her
   • Explore the problem and find out what kind of help is wanted
10. Why is an open-door policy important?
    • Good ventilation is important for health
    • It allows the mother to come back when it suits her
    • It allows your supervisor to see what you are doing
    • There is less risk of fire in the facility
11. How do you follow up on a referral?
    • Check if the woman attended the appointment and if she did not go, explore the reasons why
    • Check if the woman attended the appointment and shout at her for wasting your time if she did not attend
    • Follow her as she goes to the appointment
    • If you have sent a referral letter, you don’t need to check if she attended the appointment
12. Which of the following problems can be dealt with in counselling?
    • Problems with social issues like Child Support Grants
    • Problems with emotional issues like anger or abuse
    • Problems with financial issues like debt
    • Problems with Maintenance Grants
13. What can a very anxious mother expect from counselling?
    • Good advice
    • Money for food and clothing
    • Someone who will listen and tell her what to do
    • Someone who will listen and let her express her feelings
14. Why might women not attend appointments?
    • They are lazy
    • They don’t want help
    • They experience practical and emotional barriers that stop them going to appointments
    • They are uncooperative
15. How can depression or anxiety affect the mother’s ability to take up a referral?
    • It can make them lazy
    • They may forget appointments
    • They will be too busy getting dressed up to go to the appointment
    • They should be staying at home to take care of themselves
16. If there are no counselling resources available, which of the following can you do to help?
    • Ignore the problem
    • Give advice and tell the mother she needs to be more active
    • Listen to her story and show empathy
    • Complain to your colleague that there is nothing in your area for depressed women
17. How can a support group help a depressed mother?
    • It can make her feel that she is crazy and an unfit mother
    • It can be difficult because she has to take time off work
    • It can be difficult to trust other people
    • It can help her to feel less isolated and not the only person with problems of depression
18. What is a doula?
    • The Greek word for a birth companion
    • The Swedish word for a back massage done to help labour pains
    • The American money symbolised by the $ sign
    • The Egyptian food given to nursing mothers to help produce milk
19. What can a doula do to help?
    • She can put up pain relief drips
    • She can do vacuum extractions
    • She can support the mother and helps to calm her
    • She can intervene with the medical team and stops them doing unnecessary Caesarean sections
20. What can one of the benefits of having a doula be?
    • More need for pain relief
    • Shorter length of labour
    • Increased chance of a Caesarean section
    • Shorter duration of breastfeeding