At the 48th Symposium of the Croatian Association for the Promotion of Midwifery (HUPP) held on 24 October 2025, Roda presented the new Erasmus+ project MOMental – Cross-Border Collaboration for Maternal Mental Health in Crisis Settings. The project was presented by Bojana Šantić and Branka Mrzić Jagatić, who highlighted why strengthening support for maternal mental health is essential, particularly in periods when systems are under the greatest strain.
The presentation introduced the current challenges: perinatal mental health remains insufficiently integrated into training and protocols, while crises such as war, economic instability and climate change amplify existing pressures. Midwives often face these challenges first, yet frequently without structured or context-sensitive educational tools.
The project’s concept and three core goals were presented:
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Strengthening partner organisations through shared learning, research and development of guidelines.
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Building capacity among care providers (midwives, doulas, childbirth educators, lactation consultants, peer supporters) through a structured Train-the-Trainer programme.
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Developing a digital Learning Hub, including videos, self-assessment tools and learning modules available in multiple languages.
Conference participants expressed particular interest in the forthcoming Learning Guide, which will summarise good practices and recommendations for working in different crisis contexts, as well as in the training programme that will bring together 20 educators from partner countries in 2026–2027.
The presentation also emphasised the importance of involving health professionals, civil society organisations and policymakers throughout the project lifecycle, ensuring that outputs are both practical and widely accessible.
Roda will continue to collaborate with midwifery and mental health professionals, and updates on MOMental activities will be regularly published on our website.
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