Fathers have significant unmet mental health needs. One in ten fathers experience depression or anxiety during the perinatal period; even more exhibit adverse behaviors like aggression and substance use. Mental health symptoms are exacerbated by financial, social, and familial stressors of parenting. Fathers’ poor mental health adversely impacts their partners, parenting behaviors, and family wellbeing. Yet mental health resources for fathers are scarce and particularly rare in rural, resource-limited areas of Washington.
This project involves formative research to understand fathers’ mental health needs, parenting stressors, care-seeking barriers, and preferences for digital support during the perinatal period. We will convene a novel community advisory board comprised of Washington-based fatherhood stakeholders. We will collect surveys and interviews among diverse fathers recruited via UW Medicine perinatal services and community advisory board organizations to derive a roadmap for novel digital paternal perinatal interventions. Developing a father-specific digital intervention directly informed by fathers could address a gap in Washington family thriving
