The development of model hospital-based breastfeeding support programs has presumed that an excellent breastfeeding support program can increase the proportion of babies who are breastfed. We have sought to test this presumption.
We interviewed a supervising maternity nurse from each of the 57 Oregon birthing hospitals in September-October 1998, using a 65-question survey instrument developed for this study. From the survey, we created a scoring scheme ("composite implementation score") for measuring breastfeeding support policies and procedures.
Newborn screening data in Oregon includes information on infant feeding type. Repeat newborn screening data (two weeks after birth) from 40,696 of 43,765 (92.9%) Oregon births for 1997 showed a statistically significant correlation between the proportion of newborns from each hospital who were reported to be exclusively breastfeeding at two weeks and the composite implementation score for each hospital (Pearson Correlation Coefficient=0.314; p=0.017; R2=0.099).
These findings suggest that women delivering at hospitals with strong breastfeeding support programs are more likely to be exclusively breastfeeding at two weeks than women delivering at hospitals with less strong programs. Although it is possible that women who want to breastfeed go to hospitals with strong breastfeeding support programs, this seems unlikely since the high penetrance of managed care in Oregon limits the flexibility a woman has to choose the hospital in which to deliver.
The next step will be the development of an intervention to improve perinatal hospital breastfeeding support policies and practices.
Learning Objectives: Participants should learn 1) a new way to assess infant breastfeeding in populations and 2) impact of breastfeeding support on infant breastfeeding
Keywords: Breastfeeding, Hospitals
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.