Couples’ experiences of mother and baby units (MBUs) v8
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Couples’ experiences of mother and baby units (MBUs): A qualitative study of the couple relationship from the perspective of mothers and intimate partners.
IRAS ID
291617
Contact name
Natalie Jones
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Leeds
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
N/A, N/A
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 24 days
Research summary
Research Summary
This study aims to explore couples' experiences of being in a mother and baby unit (MBU). This may help services improve. Poor mental health in pregnancy and the first 2 years after birth has been shown to effect children's development.
In this research, couples will be asked to come to a joint interview a minimum of 4 weeks and maximum of 12 weeks after leaving the MBU. This is to ensure a similar amount of time has passed for all couples and their experiences are recent in their minds. Interviews will be arranged either face to face or online. Participants will be identified through help of staff who work in the MBU and Community Perinatal Mental Health (PMH) Service in Leeds, by social media and by charity organisations supporting parents experiencing PMH difficulties. Following ethical approval, all women who are leaving the MBU will be given a participant information sheet about the research and asked whether they would be happy to be contacted about research when they go home.
Interviews will be typed up and the researcher will look for themes which will be written up into a report.
Summary of Results
Introduction: Research suggests that perinatal mental health impacts upon relationships and that stronger couple relationships may moderate the effects of perinatal mental health. Research also suggests that intimate partners do not always feel adequately included by services accessed. However, it remains unclear how intimate partner relationships may be impacted by treatment within Mother and Baby Units and whether couples experience Mother and Baby Unit admission as impacting upon their relationship or not. This study subsequently seeks to add to the literature base by exploring couples’ experiences of Mother and Baby Unit admission with a focus on whether Mother and Baby Unit admission affected the couple relationship.Method: 6 couple dyads took part in a joint online interview. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis.
Results: Three overarching Grouped Experiential Themes were identified; (1) “We pulled apart: weakening of the couple relationship,” (2) “Treating the mother not the family unit” and (3) “Rebuilding: it made us stronger.”
Discussion: This study presents a novel opportunity to hear the voice of the couple as a whole given the lack of available literature on this topic. The findings demonstrate the way the couple relationship is dismantled and rebuilt throughout the couples’ experience of Mother and Baby Unit admission, with focus on specific factors which contribute to this. The results are considered within the wider context of gender norms and inequity in society across the division of labour and parenting more generally. Fundamentally, the results indicate an inadvertent role played by services in maintaining traditional gender norms, placing additional strain on the mother through working with couples as individuals rather than as a “unit”.
The research objectives of this study were met. The results have been verbally communicated to the MBU and in writing to the relevant NHS trust research and development teams. Publication will be pursued in due course. Feedback to participants will take place via email with those who requested this via agreed consent. Creative dissemination routes will also be explored via blog/podcast.
REC name
London - Camden & Kings Cross Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
21/LO/0419
Date of REC Opinion
22 Jun 2021
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion