Improving Breastfeeding Education

Abstract

Breastfeeding provides many health and psychological benefits to both mother and child. Many women initiate breastfeeding to obtain these benefits for themselves and their child. However, breastfeeding rates in the United States remain well below the recommendations at both 6 months and one year of age. Mothers need education and support to be successful in their breastfeeding efforts. The purpose of this dissertation was to explore two interventions known to have an impact on breastfeeding success. The first was educating nurses so they can better support breastfeeding mothers. A pilot study examined an educational intervention on knowledge and attitudes about breastfeeding among pre-licensure nursing students using a two-group design. Two groups of nursing students were tested on their knowledge and attitudes concerning breastfeeding. One group received breastfeeding education using multifaceted teaching strategies from a professor certified as an International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC), while the other group received the education from a non-IBCLC professor. The two groups were compared for demographic and mean differences in knowledge and attitudes. The two groups were not equivalent with the comparison group having significantly more students with breastfeeding experience. However, the intervention did group did score significantly better on three items. One item was they felt more positively toward the adequacy of their breastfeeding education. This study and the results were reported in the first paper. The second intervention explored was breastfeeding support groups. This intervention is recommended by the Surgeon General and the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative and associated with increased duration of breastfeeding. However, little research has been done on the structure and content of breastfeeding support groups, especially in the United States, and how these groups impact the maternal breastfeeding experience. Two scholarly projects were included in the dissertation related to breastfeeding support groups. The first project fulfilled the requirement of the minor synthesis paper. The purpose was to propose a curriculum for hospital-based support groups. Literature was reviewed and the author incorporated her experience leading breastfeeding support groups to develop a flexible but comprehensive curriculum. This manuscript was the second paper included in this dissertation and was submitted for publication. The third manuscript was a report of a qualitative descriptive study of the experiences of women who attended breastfeeding support groups. A total of 20 mothers attending local breastfeeding support groups were interviewed. Abstraction was used for data analysis and common themes were identified. Five main themes were identified in this study: (1) mothers felt comfortable speaking openly without being judged, (2) mothers’ mental health was improved by getting out and talking with mothers having similar experiences, (3) mothers needed assistance preparing to return to work, (4) attendance was driven by the need for help but maintained by comradery, and (5) group support increased mothers’ confidence to continue breastfeeding longer. These three articles will be useful for educating healthcare professionals, describing the importance of breastfeeding education and support, and demonstrating the benefits associated with education and support for breastfeeding mothers. Keywords: breastfeeding, breastfeeding education, breastfeeding support, social support