Assessment of initiation and establishment of lactation among primiparous mothers

Abstract

Breastfeeding the infants within one hour of birth can reduce infant mortality. Knowledge of exclusive breastfeeding among women is essential when promoting optimal breastfeeding practices. Hence, this study was conducted to evaluate initiation and establishment of lactation, level of knowledge and attitude, and actual practices of breastfeeding among postnatal primigravida mothers. This cross-sectional study was carried out on 400 postnatal primigravida mothers for one year. Mothers were interviewed and their socio-demographic details and data on time of initiation of prelacteal feeds, number of times of feeding per day, and breastfeeding duration were collected using semi-structured questionnaires. Proper counseling on breastfeeding practices including initiation and establishment of lactation was provided on the basis of the responses to the questionnaire. Pre- and post-counseling scores were interpreted and compared for all the primiparous mothers. The association between variables was examined using t-test. P-value of <0.0001 was considered statistically significant. Remarkable improvement in the post-counseling test scores was observed in terms of education, age, residence, religion, mode of delivery, weight, occupation, type of family, and sex of the baby (p<0.0001). A significant improvement was noted in mothers with more than 12th grade level of education and those who were from nuclear families and resided in urban areas (p<0.0001). Knowledge of initiation and establishment of lactation improved in primiparous mothers. Counseling improved the attitude towards lactation in all the primiparous mothers. Hence, wherever possible, relevant health programs on the awareness of timely breastfeeding should be initiated in future for all primiparous mothers.