Breastfeeding mothers' awareness and experience of using the breastfeeding memory aide CHINS: An exploratory descriptive qualitative study

Abstract

AbstractBackgroundBreastfeeding has immediate and long‐term benefits for both mother and child, but many mothers feel unprepared for the challenges of early breastfeeding. The first letter mnemonic, close, head free, nose to nipllie, in‐line, sustainable (CHINS) was developed as a tool to help practitioners remember retain and recall the principles of positioning for effective breastfeeding and a UK‐wide evaluation shows it is used widely within the UK breastfeeding workforce. This study sought to understand the extent to which breastfeeding mothers were aware of CHINS and their experience of using it to support their breastfeeding.MethodsAn exploratory qualitative research design was used to describe and interpret the findings of individual interviews with 11 breastfeeding mothers from across the United Kingdom who were recruited via a digital flier shared via social media and breastfeeding networks. The interviews were analysed thematically.ResultsAwareness and perception of CHINS, Timing of introduction to CHINS, and Sharing CHINS were the key themes to emerge, with an overarching core theme—The Right Advice at the Right Time. All the participants in the study were aware of CHINS and found it particularly helpful during the early stages of breastfeeding. Some participants reported that others, including fathers and peers, were aware of CHINS and had used it to support breastfeeding mothers. The participants felt support for breastfeeding was variable and that it was important to ensure that the right advice was given at the right time.ConclusionThis study included a small number of breastfeeding mothers from across the United Kingdom and whilst there were high levels of awareness and perceived value of CHINS, a larger study would be warranted to explore the value of CHINS in more depth as well as to understand the role of CHINS in the wider education of peers and significant others, including fathers.