Project Title: Breastfeeding Knowledge and Participation Improvement Project Authors: Stephen Macari, MD
Program: Swedish Family Medicine Residency
Abstract: The aim of this research topic is to improve education around breastfeeding, especially in the underserved populations. Despite most early newborn care being centered around breastfeeding as the healthiest method of feeding, participation in exclusive breastfeeding for the entire first 6 months of life is not particularly high. The data shows that women tend to have an interest in breastfeeding, but for confidence or comfort reasons tend to abandon the idea before 6 months of life. My project is centered around gauging interest in and understanding of breastfeeding in all pregnant women at Swedish Family Medicine. The goal is to provide education during one in-person prenatal visit that can address the many pitfalls of breastfeeding, and look to measure interest and understanding afterward. Beyond this short term objective, data would continue to be collected in an attempt to observe a measurable increase in total women attempting breastfeeding and ultimately completing 6 months of breastfeeding-only nutrition with their newborns
Learning Objectives: Participants will be able to… • To understand the largest challenges facing new mothers when it comes to breastfeeding • To develop a focused system for addressing these challenges in a way that changes perceptions • To create a quick reference for FP residents to use that both opens the conversation to breastfeeding earlier in pregnancy, and gives them confidence in helping women who are struggling with it
Category: Maternal and child health
***This Poster did not undergo review by the proposal review committee