The One Minute Interaction

For those looking for a simple, low resource way to transform dads’ experiences of interacting with your service, dads in Kent have designed the ‘One Minute Interaction’.

The 'One Minute Interaction' is supported by an information Z-card which allows professionals (or other community members) to talk to dads for 60 seconds (or less) with the aim of:

• Providing dads with a positive interaction with the ‘system’ that encourages support-seeking in the future if/when it is needed.

• Providing dads with some basic information, including on perinatal mental health and infant development and bonding, as well as further signposts for more detailed information..

• Providing a practical gateway into onward support that dads can access if/when it is needed.

Due to variability in family structure, working patterns, personalities, personal beliefs and responsibilities, there was no single place that all dads interacted with the system. However, all of the dads we had spoken to had come into contact with the ‘system’ at some point in the perinatal journey. The ‘One Minute Interaction’ can be delivered to dads by a range of professionals and community members at whatever point they 'bump into' the system.

The ‘One Minute Interaction’ is: 

• Simple: Dads wanted a basic interaction where they felt acknowledged and included but did not want reams of information or an ‘intervention’. 

• Short: There was wide recognition that engaging with dads was not necessarily within the scope of clinical practitioners and that capacity for additional work across the board was limited.

• Flexible: Dads wanted something that could be delivered by people from a range of different settings.

• ‘Light touch’: a number of dads told us that they didn’t want an in-depth conversation until the point at which they actually needed support and so being signposted so that they could consider this at the relevant point in their journey was enough. 

To learn more about implementation you can watch the video in this Lesson and download our Dads’ Perinatal Inclusion Playbook below.