EXPERIENCES OF FATHERS DURING CHILDBIRTH: KEY ISSUES AND IMPLICATIONS

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to develop evidence-informed best practices for improving the experiences of fathers present during childbirth. Historically, fathers were sometimes not present during the births of their children for several reasons. Fear of infection, detraction from physician autonomy, and the strong female support system during childbirth are all reasons why husbands were not traditionally involved in the child-birthing process. With the movement of childbirth into hospitals and the medicalization of childbirth, partners of pregnant women eventually were included during the labor and delivery of their children, which was found to promote better health outcomes for the mother, as well as neonatal growth and development (Brandao & Figueiredo, 2012; Leavitt, 2010; Poh, Lin Koh, Seow, & He, 2014). Unfortunately, many fathers report feeling out of place, uninvolved, uninformed, and without a clearly defined role (Brandao & Figueiredo, 2012; Inglis, Sharman, & Reed, 2016; Longworth & Kingdon, 2011). Thus, best practice recommendations for the inclusion of fathers in the child-birthing process should include male oriented antenatal education, labor and delivery staff support and encouragement, information provided to fathers about birth progress and complications, and the maintenance of the family unit.