Development of a digital preconception care tool for women with severe mental illness

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Adopted project
Adopted November 2019 · Completed autumn 2020

Development of a digital preconception care tool for women with severe mental illness

There are few preconception resources available for women with pre-existing severe mental illness (SMI). These women require specialised information and care when planning motherhood — yet the majority are not currently receiving it.

8%
of existing preconception tool users indicated they had experienced an SMI

70%
of those women had not consulted a health professional about pregnancy planning

20
in-depth interviews with women with SMI and health professionals to shape the tool

Project aims

This project aimed to develop tailored content for women with severe mental illness to add to the existing preconception tool on the Tommy’s Baby Charity website.

About the tool

The free online tool is accessible to anyone and provides preconception information for women with SMI — a traditionally under-served group — as well as other risk factors highly prevalent in south London, including smoking, diet, weight, alcohol and drug use.

The project was funded by Public Health England and NHS England and adopted by ARC South London in November 2019.

The Tommy’s Baby Charity preconception planning tool.

How the project was carried out

Rapid evidence review

A rapid evidence review synthesised existing research on preconception health for women with SMI and other related risk factors, searching both peer-reviewed and grey literature to identify the content for the tool.

Interviews with women and professionals

The team carried out 10 face-to-face interviews with women with SMI who were planning a pregnancy or pregnant from diverse backgrounds, and 10 telephone in-depth interviews with health professionals. The research team worked closely with Tommy’s Baby Charity throughout.

Lived experience advisory group

A perinatal lived experience advisory group informed every stage of the project, ensuring the tool was grounded in the real needs and perspectives of the women it was designed to support.

Potential benefits of the project

Data from past use of Tommy’s existing preconception tool shows that while 8% of users indicated they had experienced an SMI, 70% of those women had not consulted a health professional about pregnancy planning.

Based on these statistics, the existing tool is already an effective method of reaching women planning a pregnancy with SMI — but it needs to be tailored for them. This project directly addressed that gap by creating specialist content co-produced with women and clinicians, available freely online to anyone who needs it.

Reach under-served women
Free, accessible online tool for women with SMI who are planning a pregnancy

Improve health outcomes
Tailored information to support safer pregnancy planning for women with SMI

Address local inequalities
Covers risk factors highly prevalent in south London communities

🔗 Access the tool

The preconception planning tool — including the content developed through this project for women with SMI — is freely available on the Tommy’s Baby Charity website.

Visit the Tommy’s preconception tool →