Winter Newsletter:

Thank you for joining our recent event “Digital Mental Health in the Perinatal Period” and signing up to the newsletter. We were incredibly enthused to see high numbers of stakeholder register for the event, and to welcome you to hear our expert speakers, as well as share your own knowledge and experiences working with parents and caregivers. The goal of this project is to create a community of stakeholders who are interested in encouraging effective digital mental health practices for parents in the perinatal period, and we believe that this is the first step in achieving that!

Emerging Themes

During the event, a number of emerging themes were observed, particularly during stakeholders’ discussions around digital mental health in Scotland. These themes are critical in considering how to engage with parents to ensure that digital mental health can be provided effectively to those in need.

These themes encompassed areas including:

• Equitable access to mental health services across different areas of Scotland. While digital mental health services are useful in reaching more isolated communities, as well as providing efficient and effective services in the home, issues surrounding digital poverty should be considered.

• Ensuring that parents have appropriate support while accessing digital mental health services was also identified as an important feature of effective use, with stakeholders suggesting that parents using digital mental health apps by themselves could be at risk of retraumatisation, or of not completing the course due to fatigue, stigma, or lack of connection to the material.

• Where do fathers fit in? Conversations across the event highlighted the fact that many mental health services in the perinatal period appear to be targeted at mothers and women, leaving fathers to feel isolated and neglected. A whole family approach is necessary to encourage good mental health for all.

• Questions also arose during the panel discussion surrounding parental smartphone use outside of accessing digital mental health services. How can we encourage effective smartphone use, that does not disrupt the developing bond between the parent and their young infant, and how can we encourage good smartphone use habits early in parenthood?

Your Feedback Matters

We appreciated your feedback regarding the event and will use it to inform the planning of our new events across 2025.

We asked you what events you would like to see in the future and you told us:

Useful Resources for Digital Mental Health

In giving feedback, many of you also asked for a list of resources. The festive period can be difficult for many parents, so having resources on hand to offer support is a vital tool for service providers at this time.

We are happy to be able to share with you a number of resources collated by Dr Marie-Claire Shankland (Programme Director; NHS Education for Scotland).

What’s coming in the New Year? 

2025 will bring a number of exciting opportunities to this project. As part of our research pathway, we will be recruiting parents to explore how becoming a parent has impacted their smartphone use.

We will also be looking forward to inviting you all to more stakeholder events focusing on effective digital mental health for parents and caregivers across the perinatal period.

Keep an eye on your inbox for more engagement and impact events coming soon!