![Sample our Health and Social Care journals, sign in here to start your FREE access for 14 days]({"type":"image" , "src" : "/sda/5938/TOC-Subject-Sample-2021-Health-Social-Care.jpg"})
ABSTRACT
Objective
This study explored what support male partners of women admitted to Mother and Baby Units (MBUs) wanted.
Background
Although research has highlighted the need to support male partners of women admitted to specialist MBUs, little is known about the type of support men want and how they wish support to be delivered
Methods
Ten men whose partner was admitted to a MBU in the United Kingdom or Australia participated in semi-structured interviews. Data were analysed using Thematic Analysis.
Results
Five themes were identified: (1) A smoother journey to and from the MBU, (2) Feeling included, (3) Uncertainty about ‘what is going on’, (4) Barriers to support and (5) Facilitators of support.
Conclusion
This is the first qualitative study to specifically explore the type of support male partners of MBU patients would like in terms of content, delivery and timing. Participants expressed the need to be involved in care decisions regarding their spouse and infant and to be offered advice from professionals. They highlighted barriers to accessing support and offered solutions to minimise those. In terms of clinical implications, we recommend a support package, which could be developed for MBUs to improve outcomes for male partners and their family.
Acknowledgments
The authors wish to express their sincere gratitude to all the men who took part in our study and who shared their time and experiences; without their support, this study would not have been possible. We would also like to thank Action on Postpartum Psychosis and the staff at Manchester’s MBU, called Andersen Ward, and their ward manager for helping with recruitment for this study.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.
Supplementary material
Supplemental data for this article can be accessed here.