Nichole Fairbrother

University of British Columbia

Dr. Nichole Fairbrother is an assistant professor with the UBC Department of Psychiatry and the Island Medical Program. She received her Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of British Columbia in 2002, and subsequently completed a post-doctoral fellowship in women’s reproductive health through the Child and Family Research Institute and the UBC Department of Health Care and Epidemiology.

In addition to her position with the UBC Department of Psychiatry, Dr. Fairbrother also holds appointments with the UBC School of Population and Public Health (SPPH), the University of Victoria’s (UVic) Department of Psychology, and the UVic Division of Medical Sciences (DMS). Via BC Women’s Hospital and Health Centre, Dr. Fairbrother is a member of the Women’s Health Research Institute (WHRI).

Dr. Fairbrother’s research is in the area of reproductive mental health with an emphasis on perinatal anxiety disorders and epidemiology. Her current research projects include a large-scale study of maternal postpartum thoughts of infant-related harm and their relation to postpartum obsessive compulsive disorder (ppOCD) and maternal aggression, and a study of a new measure of fear of childbirth. She is currently in the planning stages for two randomized controlled trials of online CBT for perinatal anxiety – specific phobia, fear of childbirth, and ppOCD.

Ethical issues in the assessment of postpartum maternal aggression Presentation

All Sessions by Nichole Fairbrother

  • Thursday April 11th


  • 15:45  - 16:45
    Unwanted, intrusive thoughts of harming one's infant are experienced by approximately 50% of new mothers. These thoughts can be extremely upsetting to the women who experience them; provoking fears about their mental stability and ability to mother. Perinatal caregivers often worry that these thoughts may be harbingers of child abuse. However, the evidence suggests that the occurrence of these thoughts is a normative postpartum experience, and is much more likely to lead to the onset and/or exacerbation of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), a potentially debilitating anxiety disorder, than to child harm. Responding appropriately to women who report these kinds of thoughts is critical for mothers and their infants. In order to better understand the relationship, if any, between these types of thoughts and maternal aggression towards the infant, we conducted a province-wide study of new mothers' unwanted, intrusive thoughts of harm and their relationship with child harming behaviours and OCD. A total of 850 women participated. Assessment included interviews and questionnaires in pregnancy and the postpartum. In this presentation I will discuss the study findings, and the ethical issues relevant to studies in which assessments of harm thoughts and potential child abuse are conducted. Specifically, I will outline the various steps we took to ensure the fully, informed consent of participants and protection of highly sensitive information. Keywords: Child harm, limits of confidentiality, anonymity
    Breakout Sessions
    Where
    Meeting Room # 9-12




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