Breastfeeding Education for Obstetric Providers in a Rural Public Health Department

Abstract

Breastfeeding has many known positive benefits for both mother and baby. Prenatal breastfeeding education has been proven beneficial to expectant mothers; however, there is no known current data recommending how often and during which prenatal visits to provide this education. Multiple reputable agencies recommend exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life, nevertheless breastfeeding rates are well below the goals of Healthy People 2020. This project aimed to increase prenatal breastfeeding education by obstetric providers in a rural southeastern North Carolina health department. A pre-education survey was completed by clinic staff prior to a 1-hour breastfeeding education session. The education session discussed breastfeeding information, facts, recommendations, and a list of local resources for additional breastfeeding education and support. The obstetric provider was then tasked with discussing and documenting breastfeeding education once in the first trimester, once in the second trimester, and three times in the third trimester with all prenatal patients. Weekly visits were made to the clinic during the 2-month implementation phase for continued staff education, reinforcement, and chart audits. The clinic saw 152 mothers for prenatal visits, with 64.5% being enrolled in Medicaid, 23.7% being self-pay patients, and 11.84% had private insurance. It was found that the obstetric provider documented breastfeeding education for only 4.66% of prenatal patients seen. These results could be due to poor follow-through in providing breastfeeding education or omission in documenting education. Improved consistency may increase intentional breastfeeding education.