Naslov
Breastfeeding Attitudes of Maternity Staff in Croatia: A before/after study of five maternity facilities.

Autori
Zakarija-Grković, Irena ; Burmaz, Tea

Vrsta, podvrsta i kategorija rada
Sažeci sa skupova, sažetak, znanstveni

Skup
European Lactation Consultant Association Biennial Conference

Mjesto i datum
Basel, Švicarska, 2010

Vrsta sudjelovanja
Poster

Vrsta recenzije
Međunarodna recenzija

Ključne riječi
Nema ključnih riječi

Sažetak
Background A mother’s first few days in hospital provide the basis for future breastfeeding success and maternity staff’s attitudes towards breastfeeding can significantly influence the direction this will take. Objective To evaluate the effect of an educational intervention (UNICEF/WHO 20-hour course for maternity staff) on attitudes of health professionals (HPs) towards breastfeeding. Methods An anonymous Iowa Infant Feeding Attitude Scale (IIFAS) questionnaire was distributed to 424 and 308 health professionals of five maternity facilities in southern Croatia before and three months after completing UNICEF/WHO 20-hour course. Results Response rate was 53% before and 69% post- education. Majority of respondents were midwives, aged between 36-50, with breastfed children. HPs were significantly more inclined towards breastfeeding post-education (p<0.001). Consequently, the number of staff with very positive attitudes increased from 8.9% to 10.4%, with positive attitudes from 64.6% to 79.3% and those with neutral attitudes dropped from 26.6% to 9.9%. The number of pro-formula staff pre and post education was negligible. Eight out of 17 IIFAS items shifted significantly towards favouring breastfeeding. HPs post education were less likely to consider that breastmilk is lacking in iron (P= .04), formula to be more convenient than breastfeeding (P < .001), breastfed babies to be more easily overfed than formula fed babies’ (P = .007) and to believe that ‘a mother who occasionally drinks alcohol should not breastfeed her baby’ (P < .001). Following the course, HPs were more likely to support statements favourable to breastfeeding including: ‘mothers who formula feed miss one of the great joys of motherhood’ (P = .004), ‘breast milk is the ideal food for babies’ (P = .02) and ‘breast milk is more easily digested than formula’ (P = .02). Surprisingly, HPs whose children had been breastfed were more likely to agree with the statement ‘formula feeding is the better choice if a mother plans to work outside the home’ and more women than men supported the notion that ‘women should not breastfeed in public places such as restaurants’. Conclusion Based on their IIFAS score, health professionals adopted significantly more positive attitudes towards breastfeeding after attending the UNICEF/WHO 20-hour course.

Izvorni jezik
Engleski

Znanstvena područja
Javno zdravstvo i zdravstvena zaštita

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