Contacting fathers for antenatal sickle cell and thalassaemia screening
Published 1 January 2012
© Crown copyright 2012
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Guidance on contacting fathers-to-be for antenatal screening for sickle cell and thalassaemia
When antenatal screening finds that a woman is a carrier for sickle cell and thalassaemia, staff need to offer a screening test to the baby’s father.
Because the father is not the initial patient, they may need to obtain his contact details from the mother. Various confidentiality and disclosure issues then arise. The screening programme took advice from the Fatherhood Institute about the legal position.
Summary of advice to health professionals
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You may collect and record the father’s full contact details even if he is not present and even if he has not given permission first. This is the case even if the mother and father are not married or cohabiting and even if he does not have parental responsibility.
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Where the mother (or another third party) provides the contact details, you should ask her to inform the man that they have done so and explain why. You should ensure that the mother can clarify that this is so that you can contact the father to offer him screening and that this may give him important information about the health of his baby. You should give the mother a copy of the leaflet for fathers, Tests for Dads, to give to the father.
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When you or a colleague first contact the dad, you must explain how you obtained his details and the reason for holding them. He may ask you to remove them. This is unlikely. However if he insists you should do so.
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You may need to reassure both father and mother that you are not going to pass their details to any other government agency. Holding his details is just for your own use, to keep him informed.