A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial of a Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Intervention With Primiparous Mothers

Objectives To pilot test a newly developed breastfeeding self-efficacy intervention. Design Pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT). Setting An acute care hospital located in Northwestern Ontario that is the sole provider of maternity care for the city and referral center for the region. Participants One-hundred-and-fifty primiparous women intending to breastfeed their healthy, term, singleton infant. Intervention A standardized, individualized nursing intervention protocol was designed and administered to increase mothers' breastfeeding self-efficacy. Participants were randomly allocated to the intervention group or control group using sealed, opaque envelopes. Participants in the intervention group received three individualized, self-efficacy enhancing sessions with the researcher: two in-hospital and one by telephone. Participants in the control group received standard in-hospital and community care. Main Outcome Measures Feasibility, compliance, and the acceptability of the breastfeeding self-efficacy intervention. Other outcomes assessed were breastfeeding self-efficacy, duration, and exclusivity. Results Findings suggest that the intervention was feasible; there was a high degree of protocol compliance, and the majority of mothers reported that the intervention was beneficial. Mothers in the intervention group had higher rates of breastfeeding self-efficacy, duration, and exclusivity at 4 and 8 weeks postpartum. However, the differences between groups were not statistically significant. Conclusion The pilot RCT provided valuable information in examining the feasibility of the trial design and intervention.