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313394
Long way home: Institutional barriers to paternal involvement, Christina Ivazes
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
: 1:18 PM - 1:26 PM
Josh Beck, BA-Cinema
,
Cinema Department, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, CA
James Alvergue, BA-Cinema
,
Cinema Department, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, CA
Georgina Savage
,
Cinema Department, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, CA
This film identifies the critical junctures where paternal involvement by low-income fathers is either discouraged or encouraged by service providers, policies and/or child welfare advocates. It also identifies the general welfare policies that encourage a continuing trend of fathers who sacrifice paternity to prevent housing and food insecurity for their families. High levels of absent fathers in the U.S. lead to numerous and costly health impacts for infants, families, communities and society (Lu, et al., 2010). These impacts are compounded by race, ethnicity and socioeconomic status with 55.4% of Black children in U.S. living with mothers only, compared to 21.6% of White children (Mitchell & Lynch, 2007; Vespa, Lewis & Kreider, 2013). Mortality rates in infants born to Black mothers are double compared to Hispanic or White mothers and seven times higher in single, Black mothers with absent fathers (Alio, et al., 2010). This film drops in on two fathers who reflect how child welfare policies affect paternity and paternal involvement. They lead a fatherhood group for low-income fathers, inspired by the Fatherhood Initiative. These fatherhood group leaders provide mentorship for other fathers who have similar experiences to their own with separation trauma from their children and/or the process of reunification. The goal of this film is to create an awareness, among public health and child welfare advocates, about the vulnerable issues that determine paternal involvement. It is a call to action for public health professionals, family advocates and policymakers to proactively address policies that deter paternal involvement and/or increase the practice of paternity denial to prevent food and housing insecurity. In addition, it is a testimony to the benefits and need for more supportive agencies, like San Francisco's Homeless Prenatal Program, who serve the chronic needs of low-income parents, of whom many have been raised with absent fathers themselves.
Learning Areas:
Advocacy for health and health education
Diversity and culture
Other professions or practice related to public health
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs
Public health or related organizational policy, standards, or other guidelines
Public health or related public policy
Learning Objectives:
Explain the vulnerability of paternal involvement for low-income families
Identify the policies that have the potential to discourage the establishment of paternity
Identify the critical role that health care and child welfare providers have to either encourage or discourage paternal involvement
Identify which policies public health and child welfare advocates can work together on to advocate for policy reform and paternal involvement
Demonstrate the threat to the mental health and well-being of low-income families from policies that discourage family unity
Demonstrate the experiences of trauma for fathers who are separated from their children
Identify support resources needed and available for low-income expectant and new fathers to increase paternal involvement
Evaluate the need to prevent family separations and reduce child placements in foster care
Keyword(s): Public health or related public policy, Advocacy for health and health education
Presenting author's disclosure statement:Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have been a graduate student researcher in this field and am not being paid by any commercial or non-profit entity to promote the policy reforms in this film that will encourage more paternal involvement in low-income families. My former research in maternal and infant health outcomes has led me to the need for these policy reforms.
Any relevant financial relationships? No
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines,
and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed
in my presentation.
