Malta has launched its first community centre dedicated to perinatal mental health, located at the Ċensu Moran Regional Health Centre, aimed at bolstering support for new and expectant parents and their infants.
The initiative coincides with the gradual rollout of a new National Perinatal Mental Health Screening Programme designed to ensure early detection and prompt care, the government said in a statement.
During a visit to the facility, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Health Dr Ian Borg highlighted the importance of seamless collaboration across national health entities to make care readily accessible to families in need. The dedicated centre offers specialized assessment, treatment, and ongoing support for women experiencing mental health challenges during pregnancy and throughout the first year following childbirth, including conditions such as anxiety, depression, birth-related trauma, and adjustment difficulties.
Since opening its doors in February 2026, the centre has conducted approximately 1,200 appointments for mothers, fathers, and their babies. The modern facility features clinical consultation rooms as well as a specialized sensory room for infants, designed specifically for parent-child interaction assessments and targeted early interventions.
The multidisciplinary team brings together professionals from psychiatry, midwifery, obstetrics, occupational therapy, psychology, and social work to deliver fully coordinated care tailored to individual family needs. Mental Health Services CEO Roseanne Camilleri encouraged invited parents to participate actively in the screening process without hesitation, emphasizing that taking care of mental well-being is a critical step for family health. Clinical Chairman Professor Anton Grech reinforced this message, noting that while pregnancy and childbirth are joyful periods, they also bring an increased risk of mental health struggles, which are highly treatable with timely intervention.
The screening program began rolling out in mid-August 2026, reaching pregnant women via digital questionnaires on the myHealth platform, with plans to expand coverage to new mothers in their first postpartum year, as well as fathers and partners. In its first month alone, 940 invitations were issued and 225 screenings were completed, with incoming referrals evaluated for priority within 24 hours to organize timely care based on clinical urgency.