A qualitative study on the perspectives of prenatal breastfeeding educational classes in Ireland: Implications for maternal breastfeeding decisions

作者：Jennifer Kehinde, Claire O’Donnell, Annmarie Grealish · 发表于：PLoS ONE · 年份：2024 · DOI：10.1371/journal.pone.0315269 · 被引用次数：5 · 研究领域：Breastfeeding Practices and Influences、Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum、School Health and Nursing Education

BACKGROUND: Breastfeeding, acknowledged for its critical health benefits for both infants and mothers, remains markedly underutilized in Ireland, which reports the lowest breastfeeding rates in Europe. Recent data indicate that fewer than 60% of Irish mothers initiate breastfeeding at birth, with this rate precipitously declining in the subsequent weeks postpartum. Various sociocultural, psychological, and educational elements, such as prenatal breastfeeding education, influence this persistently low prevalence. This descriptive qualitative study explores the perspectives of mothers and healthcare professionals, specifically midwives and lactation consultants, on prenatal breastfeeding education classes in Ireland and how they influence mothers' breastfeeding decisions. METHODS: A qualitative descriptive methodology was employed, utilizing online semi-structured interviews with midwives, lactation consultants (n = 10), and postnatal mothers (n = 20) from four tertiary hospitals in the Republic of Ireland. The data were subjected to reflexive thematic analysis, adhering to the six-step process of thematic analysis, to extrapolate and analyse the interview transcriptions. NVivo software was used to facilitate this analysis, given its robust capabilities in organizing, coding, and retrieving qualitative data efficiently. Four criteria for qualitative research were also used to enhance analytical rigor. RESULTS: Prenatal breastfeeding education in Ireland often presents breastfee...