A randomized controlled trial to evaluate the effectiveness of a brief motivational intervention to improve exclusive breastfeeding rates: Study protocol

Abstract

Aims To estimate the effectiveness of a brief motivational intervention (BMI) in increasing the duration of exclusive breastfeeding in the first 6 months postpartum. A complementary aim was to examine a potential mediating role of breastfeeding self‐efficacy in the effectiveness of the BMI. Background Breastfeeding is associated with benefits for babies and mothers’ health. Among the pool of techniques used to encourage healthy behaviours, BMI is highlighted based on the principles of motivational interviewing. One of the main components of these interventions is the promotion of self‐efficacy, which, in fact, is a key factor for breastfeeding success. Design A multi‐centre randomized controlled clinical trial of parallel groups. Methods Women who begin to breastfeed in the first hour after birth will be randomly assigned to the intervention group (receiving a BMI at immediate postpartum plus a telephone booster at the 1st and 3rd month postpartum) or the control group (receiving standard breastfeeding education at the same time). Outcome measures include the following: breastfeeding, breastfeeding self‐efficacy, general self‐efficacy, and postnatal depression. Data will be collected before the intervention and at the 1st, 3rd, and 6th month after birth. The study protocol has been approved by Badajoz Ethics Committee of Clinical Research in October 2017. Discussion This study will identify the effectiveness of BMI in improving exclusive breastfeeding rates. The findings will give useful evidence to health professionals about how to support breastfeeding. Impact This study will address the low‐exclusive breastfeeding rates, that in our country are far lower than World Health Organization's recommendation.

Effect of a brief motivational intervention in the immediate postpartum period on breastfeeding self‐efficacy: Randomized controlled trial

“…A randomized, controlled, multicenter, parallel‐group clinical trial was completed as described in our published protocol (Franco‐Antonio et al, 2019). The study was approved by the Clinical Research Ethics Committee of the Health Service in 2017.…”

Effectiveness of a brief motivational intervention to increase the breastfeeding duration in the first 6 months postpartum: Randomized controlled trial

“…A multi‐centre randomized controlled clinical trial (RCT) of parallel groups was conducted. The study protocol was previously published (Franco‐Antonio et al., ).…”

An evaluation of a prenatal individualised mixed management intervention addressing breastfeeding outcomes and postpartum depression: A randomised controlled trial

“…Breastfeeding problems are common, affecting between 20%-80% of women (Cooklin et al, 2018). These problems may interfere with breastfeeding self-efficacy, a factor linked to breastfeeding duration (Franco-Antonio et al, 2019;Wallenborn et al, 2019).…”

“…Breastfeeding problems are common, affecting between 20%–80% of women (Cooklin et al, 2018). These problems may interfere with breastfeeding self‐efficacy, a factor linked to breastfeeding duration (Franco‐Antonio et al, 2019; Wallenborn et al, 2019). Qualitative research by Alianmoghaddam et al (2017) suggests that many mothers are not ready to manage lactation problems due to inadequate education and advice about infant feeding during their pregnancy.…”