For providers · Referrals & collaboration
A perinatal specialist for
your patients.
Refer with confidence: a board-certified PMHNP with a perinatal & postpartum focus, seeing women by telehealth across North Carolina and in person at our Raleigh office for patients in the Triangle. In-network with major North Carolina health plans.
Why providers refer to MCW
- Perinatal & postpartum focus Perinatal inpatient-unit and postpartum-depression-research experience few North Carolina prescribers bring.
- Medication management Careful, collaborative psychiatric care — including pregnancy and lactation.
- Statewide, plus a local option Telehealth anywhere in North Carolina, or in person at our Raleigh office for patients in the Triangle.
- In-network with major NC plans The current plan list is on our insurance page; self-pay welcome, too.
Collaboration
Your patient stays your patient.
We coordinate care with referring providers and keep you informed with your patient's consent — one continuous psychiatric relationship alongside the care you already provide.
Free perinatal consultation for your practice
Caring for a pregnant or postpartum patient and want expert input? North Carolina clinicians can get free, real-time perinatal-psychiatry phone consultation through NC MATTERS (NC-PAL) — a UNC-run state access program. It's a resource for your own practice, with no referral to us required: (919) 681-2909, Mon–Fri, 8 a.m.–5 p.m..
How it works
- Send a referral
Patient name and contact — we take it from there.
- We coordinate intake
Scheduling and insurance handled directly with the patient.
- Stay in the loop
Updates with patient consent, in the form you prefer.
Clinical resources for referring providers
- ADHD medication in pregnancy and lactation ADHD medication decisions in pregnancy and breastfeeding are individualized, and stopping isn't automatically safest. The evidence framework a prescriber uses.
- Beyond the postpartum visit: the first year Perinatal mood and anxiety disorders can begin or persist past the six-week visit. Why the whole first year is the window — and how to keep screening.
- Doulas and perinatal mood disorders: what to do Doulas often spend the most hours with a new mother. How to recognize a perinatal mood or anxiety disorder, support within scope, and refer well.
- Breastfeeding and psychiatric medication: the evidence For most psychiatric medications, breastfeeding isn't automatically ruled out. How a perinatal prescriber weighs the evidence — and the sources to use.
- Referring a patient with PMDD: an NC provider guide A practical referral guide for NC providers: recognizing PMDD, confirming it with prospective charting, and where to send a patient for psychiatric treatment.
- Prospective symptom charting for PMDD before referral What to have a patient track before a PMDD referral: the DRSP, two cycles of daily ratings, and the follicular-phase data that confirms the diagnosis.
- What a PMH-C certification means for your patients PMH-C is Postpartum Support International's certification in perinatal mental health. What it certifies, how it's earned, and why it matters when you refer.
- PMDD vs PME: a differential guide for providers PMDD remits between periods; premenstrual exacerbation worsens an all-month disorder. How prospective charting distinguishes them — and why it changes management.
- Postpartum psychosis vs. severe PPD: the emergency Postpartum psychosis is a rare psychiatric emergency. How to tell it from severe postpartum depression — and why it changes the response to same-day care.
- When to refer a patient with PMDD The referral thresholds for PMDD: severe premenstrual mood symptoms, suicidality, diagnostic uncertainty, or first-line management that hasn't controlled it.
- Baby blues, PPD, or postpartum anxiety? A triage guide Baby blues resolve within two weeks; symptoms that persist past two weeks or turn severe point to postpartum depression, anxiety, or an emergency. A provider triage guide.
- Maternal Depression Screening at Well-Child Visits The AAP recommends screening mothers for postpartum depression at the 1-, 2-, 4-, and 6-month well-child visits — here is the tool, the workflow, and where to refer in NC.
- Mom screened positive at a well-child visit — now what? Name the result, check safety, get consent, and refer the mother to a perinatal psychiatric prescriber — a pediatric pathway for positive maternal screens.
- The NC provider guide to perinatal mental health referrals When a perinatal patient screens positive on the EPDS, PHQ-9, or GAD-7, refer for psychiatric evaluation. Who to refer, when, and how to reach MCW in NC.
- PMHNP vs. Psychiatrist in North Carolina A PMHNP-BC in North Carolina evaluates, diagnoses, and prescribes psychiatric medication under a collaborative practice agreement with a physician. Here is what differs.
- Psychiatric Medication in Pregnancy: A Risk-Benefit Framework How a perinatal prescriber weighs a specific medication at a specific dose against the risk of the untreated illness — a decision framework, not directives.
- What Happens After You Refer: The Communication Loop After you refer a patient to MCW, you get consent-based updates — referral received, patient reached, a post-evaluation note — by call or email, not silence.
- When to Refer a Client for a Medication Evaluation Refer a therapy client for a psychiatric medication evaluation when symptoms are severe or persistent, functioning is slipping, or safety is a concern.
- Current intake availability — new patients typically seen in 1–3 business days Current intake status at Mindful Counseling & Wellness: new patients are typically seen within 1–3 business days, by telehealth anywhere in North Carolina.
- Your patient scored 13 or higher on the EPDS — a 5-minute referral pathway A practical, 5-minute pathway for NC OB, midwifery, and pediatric practices when a patient screens positive on the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale.