Do not skip the 42-day postpartum checkup; in some places it is also a postpartum depression screen
UpdatedGrade AMedium benefitLifespanFreeLittle timeSome willpower
This checkup costs nothing. On local published service lists it includes a complete blood count, a vaginal discharge exam, and one postpartum depression screen. Serious problems can still appear in the first year after birth; do not assume you are safe once the confinement month ends.
- Cost
- No money spent; it is part of basic public health services. Half a day. The hard part is not wanting to move just after the confinement month
- Benefit
- Under maternal health management in the National Basic Public Health Service Standards (Third Edition), after birth there is 1 postpartum home visit and 1 health checkup at 42 days postpartum. On local published service lists, that visit includes lab tests (complete blood count, vaginal discharge exam) and 1 postpartum depression screen. The National Health Commission’s 2020 work plan for specialized depression prevention services asks pilot areas to “include perinatal depression screening in routine prenatal checkups and postpartum visit workflows.” So whether depression screening comes with the postpartum visit depends on whether the locality does this. Serious complications can still appear in the first year after birth. On the “go to the hospital immediately” list in Item 7, “thoughts of harming yourself or the child,” “postpartum vaginal bleeding or abnormal discharge,” and “severe swelling and pain in one limb” all belong to the postpartum period
- Notes
- Postpartum depression is not being oversensitive, and one family line of “cheer up” does not fix it. There are dedicated screening questionnaires and treatment, and recovery is possible. What to do with suicidal thoughts is in Section 1. Legal options when you truly cannot raise the child are in Section 9, Item 20. This checkup also looks at how the wound is healing, how the uterus is recovering, and pelvic floor function. Contraception is discussed then too: no period after birth does not mean you cannot get pregnant
Sources · 3
- 国家卫生计生委 (2017). 国家基本公共卫生服务规范（第三版）. nhc.gov.cn/ewebeditor/uploadfile/2017/04/2017…
- 靖江市人民政府. 国家基本公共卫生服务项目——孕产妇健康管理服务（地方服务清单公开）. jingjiang.gov.cn/xxgk/zdlyxxgk/wsjk/art/2023/…
- 国家卫生健康委办公厅 (2020). 关于探索开展抑郁症、老年痴呆防治特色服务工作的通知（国卫办疾控函〔2020〕726 号）. gov.cn/zhengce/zhengceku/2020-09/11/content_5…