The NIHR’s “Tackling loneliness in parents” story highlights Dr Naughton-Doe’s research, which was co-produced with parents, practitioners, and community partners to develop a deeper understanding of how loneliness affects families and how services can better support them. Her work emphasises the complex nature of perinatal loneliness, extending beyond simply lacking social contacts to include emotional and existential disconnection, and sheds light on the inequalities that can heighten risk for some parents, such as young, neurodiverse, or marginalised groups.
“Through this project, health visitors and perinatal teams are thinking differently about loneliness… That awareness changes how they support parents.” — Dr Ruth Naughton-Doe, NIHR Three Schools’ Mental Health Programme Fellow.
Read the full case study on the NIHR website: Tackling loneliness in parents.