Mental health checks offered for new fathers

NHS England has announced that new fathers will be offered mental health checks if their partner is suffering anxiety, psychosis or postnatal depression.

As part of the 10-year plan for the health service, the announcement means that thousands of new fathers are to be offered screening and treatment for mental health problems on the NHS and is a welcome response to warnings that men’s mental health is being overlooked.

Data shows that one in five women suffer mental health problems during pregnancy and in the year following birth, but the fact that one in 10 men are thought to experience anxiety or depression in the first six months after the birth of their baby has, until now, been largely ignored.

NHS England describes this new offer as a radical initiative, saying that men should not be allowed to suffer in silence, attempting to help their partner but possibly experiencing distress of their own. The help may take the form of peer support, couples’ behavioural therapy sessions, family and parenting interventions in community perinatal mental health settings, or other talking therapies.

Simon Stevens, chief executive of NHS England, said: “At what should be one of the happiest moments of our lives, caring for a partner suffering mental ill health when a new baby arrives is a difficult and often lonely experience. Alongside the backup and friendship of other new parents in NCT and other groups, the NHS has a role to play in helping support the whole family. These days dads and partners are rightly expected to be more hands-on and NHS mental health services also need to step up and support families at times of extreme stress and anxiety.”