Souls shaped by our land – how rural communities have adapted infant mental health services to meet the needs of their population: a systematic review

There is an acceptance of the need for specialist infant mental health services in Scotland, with the Scottish Government pledging to support health boards in delivering expert care. To date, there is no available research on rural infant mental health services in Scotland. The authors of this paper conducted a systematic review of published literature about infant mental health services in rural communities, the results of which may be applicable to Scotland. Fifteen papers from across the globe were sourced from nine databases. Four models were identified, with home visiting being the prevalent intervention, followed by a consultation model, interagency working, establishing a specialist clinic and finally the creation of an association for infant mental health. There is some evidence that a consultation model, Child Parent Psychotherapy (CPP) or Video Interactive Guidance (VIG) would be an effective intervention in rural settings. Consistent themes ran throughout the papers, with interpersonal relationships, staff training/retention and our need to adapt to the landscape being the prevailing threads. Most authors identified the need for systemic working with colleagues from varied disciplines. More research is needed to understand how infant mental health services can be adapted to best meet the needs of a rural population.