Lay summary
In Aotearoa, screening for peri- and post-natal depression tends to be the responsibility of Lead Maternity Carers (LMCs) including general practitioners, midwives, and Plunket nurses. Research has shown that these professionals tend to poorly estimate a mother’s wellbeing, and that the use of a screening tool may be more accurate and consistent with guidelines. However, tools may often not be valid for Māori and Pasifika communities due to a lack of data, or not capturing Māori and Pasifika knowledge or concepts of wellbeing. In addition to this, many whānau report not being screened or underreporting symptoms due to the poorness of fit of questionnaires or fear of stigma. This study aims to explore how screening tools and processes could be improved to enhance the frequency of screening and identification of peri and post natal distress - particularly for Māori whānau.