The purpose of this thesis was to clarify what kind of support fathers need during pregnancy and how maternity services can respond to these needs. Three research questions were set: 1) what kind of services men expect from maternity clinics, 2) how the current services respond to the needs of men, and 3) how these services could be developed. The target group consisted of men who were either expecting their first child or already were biological fathers and were using or had used maternity services in the Finnish health care system.

The thesis process began with a wide literature review utilizing current, mainly Finnish, research and theoretical literature. Based on the literature review, an internet-based questionnaire was composed in order to find answers to the research questions. The questionnaire was distributed via several co-operation partners and social media. The research data was analysed with SPSS statistical program and the results were compared with previous studies.

86 men from across the country replied to the questionnaire. Because of the relatively low number of respondents, the results can be labelled as suggestive. Based on the results, fathers expect maternity clinics to be more family-centred and supportive for their fatherhood through individualised services, such as private conversations between the father and the public health nurse during the pregnancy. There was a slight correlation between the respondents’ place of residence and contentment towards maternity services. In Eastern Finland, Lapland and Northern Finland men were more contented with the guidance directed to fathers than elsewhere in Finland. According to this survey, fathers trust the public maternity services, and hope that these services are developed to correspond better to their needs.

The results of this thesis can be utilized for improving maternity services and as a basis for further studies.