P-06-1255 Ensure fathers/birth partners are involved in all assessments & care throughout the perinatal period, Correspondence – Petitioner to Committee, 14.03.22

Dear committee - Thank you for bringing this to attention. The biggest killer in men under 45 is suicide in the UK. The highest risk up to 47 times is during the perinatal period in father's. 

Since Covid we have seen higher rates of antenatal anxiety and depression in father's which may have a impact on the mother's mental health and the devolpment of the child. 

By supporting father's better may lower adverse childhood experiences ( ACES) when father's are depressed the research shows they are less likely to play, read and dance with their children. 

Covid has seen father's outside car parks for days leaving uncertainty and mother's willing their partners at scans. If we invest in father's mental health it will have far better outcomes for the whole family and the devolpment of the child. 

Father's who suffer Postnatal Depression and PTSD after witnessing a traumatic birth has linked with depression in teenage daughters ( 2019) It looks different as father's surpress their feeling and use negative coping skills and avoid situations etc. 

Canada has done a report that 1 in 4 father's suffer anxiety and depression maybe due to COVID-19 or due to men opening up about their feeling better. Like mums father's struggles to bond and all the thoughts and feeling mum has with PND of course dad's can too. 

I would like to see better support and debrief for father's and better understanding if anything like COVID-19 happens again. Better pathways