ORCID Profile
0000-0003-0202-6485
Current Organisation
University of Newcastle Australia
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Publisher: Wiley
Date: 26-05-2023
DOI: 10.1111/AJR.12997
Abstract: To determine the feasibility of identifying distressed fathers in rural areas of NSW via a ‘light touch’ support program (SMS4dads). A retrospective observational study using self‐reported distress and routinely captured help‐seeking behaviour over a 14‐month period (September 2020–December 2021) comparing rural and urban fathers. Rural and urban Local Health Districts in NSW. A total of 3261 expectant and new fathers enrolled in a text‐based information and support service (SMS4dads). Registrations, K10 score, program engagement, attrition, escalation and referral to online mental health services. Rural (13.3%) and urban (13.2%) enrolments were equivalent. Rural fathers had higher rates of distress than urban fathers (rural 19% urban 16%) and were more likely to be smokers, consume alcohol at risky levels and report lower education levels. Rural fathers were more likely to exit the program early (HR = 1.32 95% CI 1.08–1.62 p = 0.008) however, once adjusted for demographic factors aside from rurality, this increased likelihood was nonsignificant (HR = 1.10 95% CI 0.88–1.38 p = 0.401). Although engagement with psychological support during the program was equivalent, a greater proportion of rural participants were escalated to online mental health support (7.7%) than urban participants (6.1%) however, this was nonsignificant ( p = 0.222). Digital platforms offering text‐based parenting information in a ‘light touch’ format may be an effective way to screen rural fathers for mental distress and connect them to online support.
Publisher: JMIR Publications Inc.
Date: 08-12-2022
Abstract: eb-based interventions targeting parents with health and parenting support frequently report high rates of attrition. The SMS4dads text messaging program, developed in Australia, has delivered texts to over 10,000 fathers. The brief text messages, which are sent 3 times per week from 16 weeks of gestation to 48 weeks after birth, include regular reminders that participants can leave the program by texting back “STOP” to any message. Although acceptance of the program is high, almost 1 in 5 ask it to be removed. Analyzing the factors influencing attrition from digital parenting programs such as SMS4dads may assist in developing more effective interventions. his study aimed to examine factors associated with attrition in a text-based intervention targeting fathers. emographic characteristics, requests to complete a psychological scale, in idual message content, participant feedback, and automatically collected data registering clicks on links embedded in the texts were examined to identify attrition factors among 3261 participants enrolled in SMS4dads from 4 local health districts in New South Wales, Australia, between September 2020 and December 2021. articipants who were smokers, recorded risky alcohol consumption, had a lower education level, or signed up prenatally had 30% to 47% higher hazard of dropout from the program, whereas participant age, Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander status, rurality, and psychological distress score (as Kessler Psychological Distress Scale [K10] category) were not associated with dropout. Primary reasons for dropping out reported by 202 of 605 respondents included “other reasons” (83/202, 41.1%), followed by “not helpful” (47/202, 23.3%) and “too busy” (44/202, 21.8%). Program features such as repeated requests to complete a psychological scale (K10) and the content of in idual messages were not linked to increased dropout rates. Analysis of a s le (216/2612) of inactive participants who had not engaged (clicked on any embedded links) for at least 10 weeks but who had not opted out identified a further 1.5% of participants who would opt to leave the program if asked. dentifying which features of the participant population and of the program are linked to dropout rates can provide guidance for improving program adherence. However, with limited information from feedback surveys of those exiting early, knowing which features to target does not, by itself, suggest ways to increase engagement. Planning ahead to include robust measures of attrition, including more detailed feedback from participants, could provide more effective guidance. A novel element in this study was seeking feedback from inactive participants to estimate dropout from this group and thereby provide an overall dropout rate of 20%. The retention rate of 80%, relatively high compared with other web-based parenting programs for fathers, suggests that tailoring the content to specifically address fathers’ role may be an important consideration in reducing fathers’ disengagement.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 16-06-2023
DOI: 10.1002/HPJA.758
Abstract: Up to one in five new mothers experience depression or anxiety, and their partners are often the first line of social and practical support. However, many fathers are unprepared for their role as support person. The SMS4dads program ( www.sms4dads.com ) provides text‐based support to new fathers but lacks specific messages addressing maternal mental distress. A mixed methods process engaged mothers with lived experience of perinatal mental distress to identify message content for co‐designing texts in SMS4dads. Participants completed surveys derived from research literature and parenting websites using the theoretical framework of support domains: emotional or affectionate support, informational support, tangible support and positive social interaction. Mothers also indicated the most appropriate timing of support: at the point of identifying the distress (emerging), with ongoing symptoms (persistent) or during recovery (easing). Free text comments from mothers were linked to survey topics to provide ex les of wording suitable for text messages to fathers. Fifty‐five mothers with lived experience completed the surveys. All support items were more often endorsed as helpful rather than not helpful by mothers. Emotional support was thought helpful in the early stages, tangible support was valued with ongoing symptoms and social interaction appreciated as symptoms eased. Mothers experiencing perinatal depression and anxiety require a range of supportive actions by their partners, including household tasks and baby‐care, encouragement, listening and managing relationships with family and friends. Information provided by distressed mothers can provide guidance to professionals when designing information for fathers artners. Digital delivery of this co‐designed information to fathers across urban and rural areas may enhance the competence of fathers working to support mothers experiencing mental distress in the perinatal period.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 11-10-2023
DOI: 10.1002/HPJA.813
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 12-07-2023
DOI: 10.1002/HPJA.778
Abstract: Male partners are key supports for women in birth preparation and postnatally. Text‐messaging can deliver timely information to expectant and new fathers to increase their support of the mother. However, technological innovations in healthcare often fail to be adopted. This study aims to assess the impact of disseminating a ‘taster’ set of SMS messages to increase clinicians' engagement with the intervention. Ex le messages from SMS4dads were delivered to clinicians over a 3‐week period and a link provided to an evaluation survey. Agreement to two closed questions was rated on a five‐point Likert scale the frequency of specific recalled messages was calculated for the first open‐ended question. Responses to the remaining open‐ended questions were analysed with a descriptive thematic approach. A total of 418 participants (female 61.5%) working in health organisations (80.4%), mostly in nursing (33.9%) or midwifery (19.6%) enrolled. Of the 77 (18.4%) participants who provided an evaluation, 96% agreed or strongly agreed that the Professional Taster gave them a better understanding of how to explain the program, and 88% agreed or strongly agreed that they are now more likely to tell parents about the program. Analysis of the remaining two open‐ended questions revealed clinicians' concerns for fathers alongside their primary focus on maternal wellbeing. Providing ‘how to’ knowledge through receiving a s le of the intervention may increase clinicians' acceptance of technological innovation. Health‐promoting digital interventions using text are increasing. Novel tested strategies for gaining buy‐in from healthcare staff will be needed.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2022
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 25-09-2023
Publisher: JMIR Publications Inc.
Date: 18-08-2023
DOI: 10.2196/44924
Abstract: Web-based interventions targeting parents with health and parenting support frequently report high rates of attrition. The SMS4dads text messaging program, developed in Australia, has delivered texts to over 10,000 fathers. The brief text messages, which are sent 3 times per week from 16 weeks of gestation to 48 weeks after birth, include regular reminders that participants can leave the program by texting back “STOP” to any message. Although acceptance of the program is high, almost 1 in 5 ask it to be removed. Analyzing the factors influencing attrition from digital parenting programs such as SMS4dads may assist in developing more effective interventions. This study aimed to examine factors associated with attrition in a text-based intervention targeting fathers. Demographic characteristics, requests to complete a psychological scale, in idual message content, participant feedback, and automatically collected data registering clicks on links embedded in the texts were examined to identify attrition factors among 3261 participants enrolled in SMS4dads from 4 local health districts in New South Wales, Australia, between September 2020 and December 2021. Participants who were smokers, recorded risky alcohol consumption, had a lower education level, or signed up prenatally had 30% to 47% higher hazard of dropout from the program, whereas participant age, Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander status, rurality, and psychological distress score (as Kessler Psychological Distress Scale [K10] category) were not associated with dropout. Primary reasons for dropping out reported by 202 of 605 respondents included “other reasons” (83/202, 41.1%), followed by “not helpful” (47/202, 23.3%) and “too busy” (44/202, 21.8%). Program features such as repeated requests to complete a psychological scale (K10) and the content of in idual messages were not linked to increased dropout rates. Analysis of a s le (216/2612) of inactive participants who had not engaged (clicked on any embedded links) for at least 10 weeks but who had not opted out identified a further 1.5% of participants who would opt to leave the program if asked. Identifying which features of the participant population and of the program are linked to dropout rates can provide guidance for improving program adherence. However, with limited information from feedback surveys of those exiting early, knowing which features to target does not, by itself, suggest ways to increase engagement. Planning ahead to include robust measures of attrition, including more detailed feedback from participants, could provide more effective guidance. A novel element in this study was seeking feedback from inactive participants to estimate dropout from this group and thereby provide an overall dropout rate of 20%. The retention rate of 80%, relatively high compared with other web-based parenting programs for fathers, suggests that tailoring the content to specifically address fathers’ role may be an important consideration in reducing fathers’ disengagement.
No related grants have been discovered for Casey Regan.