Looking for Dads out there who want to help others!

We are helping Dr. Letourneau and her assistant, Esther Shoemaker, by spreading their research news...

Hello,

I'm writing to you as a research assistant for Dr. Letourneau's current research project on fathers and postpartum depression. We are researchers affiliated with Carleton University, University of Toronto, University of New Brunswick, University of Alberta, and University of Calgary. We are currently conducting telephone interviews with fathers of partners who have experienced postpartum depression within the last five years. We have received ethical approval from all of the institutions involved and the research is funded by the Canadian Institute of Health Research.

We are wondering if you could help us to recruit participants for this study. Maybe you could put up posters in appropriate departments, and you could hand out brochures to individuals who might be eligible to participate. We are not asking you for active recruitment. However, it would be very helpful if you could pass on the information about our study so that fathers can decide on their own if they wish to participate. Of course, any participant will be reimbursed for the time of the interview.

Here is some additional information about the study, and I attached our poster, brochure and study protocol as a reference:

We are trying to understand fathers’ experiences when their partners have postpartum depression as well as fathers’ support needs, resources, barriers to accessing support, and support preferences. We want to find out how to help men whose partners are experiencing or have experienced symptoms of postpartum depression and how to promote fathers’ and mothers’ mental health. During the hour and a half telephone interview, participants will be asked to describe their experiences related to their partners’ postpartum depression. In addition, participants will be asked to complete a number of questionnaires related to demographic information, depression, marital quality, and social support.

The results of this study will enable program planners to develop and test an intervention for fathers which will enable them to better support their wives as they experience postpartum depression.

Please let me know if I can send you posters and brochures, and if you would like more information about the study.

Sincerely,
Esther Shoemaker
PhD Student, Population Health
Institute of Population Health
University of Ottawa
ebaum038@uottawa.ca