Fathers’ experiences of support during pregnancy and the first year following childbirth – findings from a Swedish regional survey

Abstract 

Background

Support during pregnancy is mainly directed towards pregnant women, although parenthood is viewed as a joint project by society and by parents themselves. Research has shown that fathers often feel excluded by health care professionals. The aim of the present study was to describe personal and professional sources of support used by prospective and new fathers and to study factors associated with fathers having no support from anyone in mid-pregnancy.

Methods

This was a prospective longitudinal study of 655 new fathers living in a northern part of Sweden who completed four questionnaires.

Results

The majority of fathers reported having good personal support at most time points, but 18% reported that they did not have support from anyone, when asked in mid-pregnancy. A logistic regression analysis showed that the following factors were associated with not receiving support from anyone: having previous children (odds ratio (OR) = 3.4; 95% confidence interval (CI)=1.7–7.0, P <0.001), expectations from the midwife to attend antenatal visits (OR=1.9; 95% CI=1.1–3.4, P <0.05), not attending parent education classes (OR=2.3; 95% CI=1.1–4.8, P <0.05), not feeling involved by the prenatal midwife (OR=1.9; 95% CI=1.1–3.3, P <0.05), and not being offered the opportunity to attend fathers’ groups (OR=3.5; 95% CI=1.1–12.3, P <0.05).

Conclusion

Although personal support seemed satisfying for the majority of fathers, those with no support from close family/friends also lacked support from midwives as well in terms of the organization of care.

Keywords: Fathers, Support, Pregnancy, Antenatal care