Breastfeeding Duration: Antenatal Education Session

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Table of Contents

Aim of the Lesson
Outcome for the Lesson
Content
Teaching Aids
Teaching Strategies
Evaluation of the Lesson
Conclusion
References

In Australia, all women regardless of age, origin or personal circumstances have access to maternity services and antenatal care. According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2016), the number of women giving birth has increased by 12% (from approximately 270,000 to 310,000) over the last several years. Antenatal education promotes an environment where the relationship between a mother and her child is properly developed in terms of breastfeeding, healthy diet, physical exercise, and regular assessments (Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, 2017). A lesson plan about the significance of exclusive breastfeeding duration will be developed to include goals, outcomes, content, strategies and techniques of antenatal education.

Aim of the Lesson

Antenatal education comprises part of the care that healthcare professionals offer to their patients during pregnancies. In this lesson, the aim is to develop a deep understanding of the particularities of breastfeeding, the consequences of its increased duration and outcomes in terms of the mother’s and child’s health. Students (not only women who are to become mothers but also other students such as fathers and family members) will focus on the benefits of breastfeeding, decide on feeding duration and use interventions depending on their interests, needs and resources.

Outcome for the Lesson

Antenatal education is characterised by a number of positive moments for mothers, their partners, children, families and healthcare providers. The outcomes for this lesson are as follows:

To explain the value of the breastfeeding process for mothers and children from emotional, physiological and health perspectives;
To describe the conditions under which exclusive breastfeeding is identified as an obligatory expectation or a recommended option;
To evaluate already conducted and approved studies investigating antenatal education to increase breastfeeding duration;
To understand and choose among the interventions that mothers can apply in their intention to increase the duration of breastfeeding;
To use the obtained knowledge about breastfeeding when planning child care and infant feeding procedures.

Content

Mothers can use different means to improve their health along with that of their children. Breastfeeding plays a vital role in child survival, growth and further development, especially during the first six months (World Health Organization, 2019). However, some mothers cannot follow this requirement because of personal issues, unwillingness or a lack of awareness (Lumbiganon et al., 2016). A woman must understand that it is her direct duty to provide her child with the best care and options for development.

Reasons for Choosing Exclusive Breastfeeding

Every mother should know that exclusive breastfeeding means that the child is fed by breast milk only. The benefit of this type of feeding lies in the fact that breast milk contains all necessary nutrients to protect against various childhood diseases, including diarrhoea, pneumonia or diabetes (World Health Organization, 2019). Moreover, the list of positive aspects goes beyond the already mentioned nutritional interactions. Shamir (2016) underlined the value of environmental, socioeconomic, genetic and psychological factors connecting the mother and child during breastfeeding. For example, its effects prevent and control the frequency of infection in young children.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (as cited in Shamir, 2016) observed a reduction in gastroenteritis risk by 64% and otitis media risk by 23% in breastfed children. Positive neurodevelopment is another benefit of breastfeeding that results in changes in the white and grey matter (slight impact on IQ) in adolescents exclusively fed by breast milk compared to adolescents who were not (Shamir, 2016). Decreased chances of obesity and allergy are also observed in families that support exclusive breastfeeding.

Promotion of Breastfeeding

Some mothers who understand the value of the positive aspects of breastfeeding may be challenged by an inability to employ this approach because of unpreparedness, physiological factors or medical restrictions. Antenatal education helps mothers to be ready for future feeding processes and solve possible crises. To encourage the possibility of exclusive breastfeeding, mothers should regularly check the condition of their breasts and make sure that they deal with illness or other health-related problems (Tiruye, Mesfin, Geda, & Shiferaw, 2018).

Mothers should receive counselling at different periods, including the time before giving birth, immediately after birth and during the next two months of postnatal visits (Tiruye et al., 2018). This requirement is explained by the fact that the mother’s development or child’s needs can change over time; thus, health experts’ observations and support can help to detect new conditions. Exclusive breastfeeding can be promoted through notes about feeding, initiating breastfeeding on a regular basis, hand expression and avoidance of other food or drinks except in specific medical situations (Lau, Htun, Lim, Ho-Lim, & Klainin-Yobas, 2015). Every woman is free to choose the most appropriate method after communicating with a healthcare expert.

Teaching Aids

The success of this lesson depends on how well the material is presented and explained; therefore, teaching aids must be implemented in this particular lesson and to help the teacher to develop a learning process:

A PowerPoint presentation will serve as a core teaching aid during this lesson. The rationale for this choice is clear because it offers the ability to combine visual, audio and textual information. The teacher will create a number of slides about exclusive breastfeeding lasting for six months. It is recommended to follow the 6×6 rule and choose a large font in order not to crowd too many words on the same slide and to allow the student to identify major points, develop visual associations and memorise information more effectively.
An online video clip will be used during or after the presentation. Its worth lies in the ability to explain to women how the breastfeeding process should be organised; preferable positions for particular children, mothers and situations and how mother-child contact occurs during feeding. Many short and credible video clips are available on YouTube, and it requires little time to evaluate several options and choose the best one.
A flip chart with several pieces of paper should be present in class. The rational for this teaching aid is to take notes during monologues or talks with students. Compared to blackboards or magnetic boards where information must be removed periodically, a paper flip chart makes it possible to recap all the points made and demonstrate progression from the beginning to the end.
A short, concise handout about the importance of exclusive breastfeeding and techniques will be handed to every mother or other student as a takeaway at the end of the lesson. This lesson not only provides a recommendation on how to promote breastfeeding for infants, but it is a guide for parents to improve their children’s health, establish parent-child contact and observe positive outcomes either in six months or six years.

Teaching Strategies

Educating different people requires the application of specific teaching strategies and communication skills. The introduction of information is a significant aspect of any lesson, and the choice of teaching strategies cannot be ignored. In any classroom, it is vital to promote a dynamic environment to bring different students together with the teacher, develop their skills and personalities and improve their level of knowledge about the topic.

Lecture

The idea of providing lectures to mothers is a commonly available form of education today. While the potential exists for a listener to feel bored or uninvolved in the learning process because of the impossibility of sharing immediate feedback and the necessity to listen to and accept large amounts of information, at the same time, lectures are helpful in that they can underline the main aspects of the topic, describe the peculiarities of the feeding process and use multiple sources to prove the correctness of the chosen material. The lecture may be short, taking a third of the lesson.

Cooperative Learning and Work in Groups

When students receive knowledge, they must share what they have learned and consider how to use it properly. Working in groups allows them a chance to cooperate and discuss the material in the most convenient ways. Women can share their emotions, underline doubts and identify new perspectives. In terms of cooperative learning, such qualities as self-confidence, critical thinking and decision-making are developed. The teacher must generate some common topics for discussion and devise small tasks and rewards for groups to encourage participation and explain the value of the lesson for future motherhood.

Debate

Exclusive breastfeeding may have its pros and cons, and a woman faces the task of weighing all of them to make a decision. Debate makes it possible to discuss various aspects of the feeding process. A strong feature of this strategy is an opportunity to use objective and subjective opinions and be correct in both cases. The result of this activity is stimulation towards new discoveries and experiences in the chosen field.

Evaluation of the Lesson

The evaluation is based on women’s knowledge about breastfeeding and their opinions about the lesson. A questionnaire will be offered to the participants before and after the lesson. It will include 20 items: 10 questions about common knowledge of breastfeeding as a part of antenatal care and 10 questions about women’s readiness to choose exclusive breastfeeding for six months’ duration. The differences between the answers in the pre- and post-test questionnaires will reveal the core of the evaluation and the improvements (if any) of knowledge in students. Several questions about the merit of the lesson, its impact on future decisions and overall value will also be posed to each student to assess the idea of the lesson.

Conclusion

Theoretical aspects of exclusive breastfeeding and the development of practical skills are crucial in antenatal education. The choice of teaching aids and strategies must be properly made reflecting the needs of women and available resources in the classroom. Debates, lectures, online clips and PowerPoint presentations have the potential to encourage better understanding of exclusive breastfeeding for six months and provoke women to investigate the benefits and obstacles of this process to achieve positive health outcomes for themselves and their children.

References

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2016). Australia’s mothers and babies 2016 in brief. Web.

Lau, Y., Htun, T. P., Im Lim, P., Ho-Lim, S., & Klainin-Yobas, P. (2015). Maternal, infant characteristics, breastfeeding techniques, and initiation: Structural equation modeling approaches. PloS One, 10(11), e0142861. Web.

Lumbiganon, P., Martis, R., Laopaiboon, M., Festin, M. R., Ho, J. J., & Hakimi, M. (2016). Antenatal breastfeeding education for increasing breastfeeding duration. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 12. Web.

Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. (2017). Maternity care in Australia: A framework for a healthy new generation of Australians. Web.

Shamir, R. (2016). The benefits of breast feeding. Nestlé Nutrition Institute Workshop Series, 86. 67-76. Web.

Tiruye, G., Mesfin, F., Geda, B., & Shiferaw, K. (2018). Breastfeeding technique and associated factors among breastfeeding mothers in Harar city, Eastern Ethiopia. International breastfeeding journal, 13(1), 5. Web.

World Health Organization. (2019). Exclusive breastfeeding for optimal growth, development and health of infants. Web.

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