Humans are born connected. Separation is a learned behavior and in Western society, is often an accelerated process beginning just moments after birth.
If we can learn to separate, then we can unlearn those practices too. We can learn to reconnect.
In recent time, skin-to-skin contact immediately after birth and beyond has been widely embraced as a tool to keep mothers and babies connected and to promote bonding. Skin-to-skin contact is encouraged to facilitate bonding between baby and father and other care providers too.
As NICHQ President and CEO Scott D. Berns, MD, MPH, FAAP points out in Fathers: Powerful Allies for Maternal and Child Health, “father engagement and involvement is a critical opportunity to improve children’s health outcomes in the decades to come”… beginning in the prenatal period.
Despite overwhelming evidence demonstrating the importance of paternal involvement, fathers are up against significant barriers “including systemic obstacles related to employment, and a lack of confidence stemming from social stereotypes about the expected role of a father—namely that their role is somehow secondary to the mother’s.” [https://www.nichq.org/insight/fathers-powerful-allies-maternal-and-child-health]
In an effort to address paternal mental health, Healthy Children Project faculty Eira Yates in partnership with OhioGuidestone developed the Yates Paternal Depression Screening Tool for male fathers, a first of its kind measurement.
The tool is reminiscent of the Edinburgh Postpartum Depression Scale (EPDS) developed to screen for depression in women during and after pregnancy and childbirth, but different in that it is sensitive to fatherhood and “not retrofitted and adapted from tools developed to capture unique characteristics of depression in women and mothers.”
The Yates tool can screen male fathers during the perinatal period (prenatal or before birth up to 12 months after birth) for signs of depression with questions related to Mood/Loss of Interest and Motivation, Aggression/Irritability, Self-Concept/Feelings of Worth, Social System Deficits and Drug/alcohol use.
“We believe that a culturally sensitive, carefully designed tool can give insight into the particular ways depression manifests in male fathers, identify men at risk for perinatal depression, and highlight the need to tailor treatment and services to the unique experiences of male fathers,” Brittany Pope, M.S., Director of Applied Clinical Sciences and Research at OhioGuidestone explains. “Furthermore, we hope to spur opportunities to explore potential programming, treatment and policy changes, both to raise awareness of the need to screen male fathers and to offer efficient and effective services and programs to meet their clinical and parenting needs.”
The tool isn’t yet published and due to COVID-19, research activity has been suspended, however the team plans to reopen the study using remote telehealth videoconferencing in August/September. This method will allow for even higher recruitment and screening.
You can learn more about the screening tool at The Institute of Family & Community Impact’s website here.
In another effort to include fathers in the conversation around birth practice, separation and support, Lactation Specialist Lydia O. Boyd, CLE is conducting a survey to capture the experiences of Black males through the Covid-19 pandemic. The survey can be found here.
Reaching Our Brothers Everywhere (ROBE), an organization dedicated to educating, equipping, and empowering men to impact an increase in breastfeeding rates and a decrease infant mortality rates within the African-American communities, is hosting its 2020 Virtual Summit June 23 & 25 featuring speakers Dr. Saturu Ned, former Black Panther, Dr. Brian McGregor, Dr. Torian Easterling, Kenn Harris from National Healthy Start and the entire ROBE team. Register here.