Does Telephone Counselling Promote Breast Feeding Duration in Taiwan?

Background: In Taiwan, actual breastfeeding rates fall short of 6 months recommendation duration. 60.2% of infants are breastfed at 1 month, decreasing to 47.3% by 4 months and 37.9% by 6 months. The study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of telephone-based counselling in encouraging mothers’ breastfeeding duration at least 3 months in Taiwan. Methods: A quasi-experimental design using pre-and post-tests with intervention and control groups was selected for the study. A total 79 mothers were invited to participate randomized into either experimental group (n=40) or control group (n=39). Both groups received usual care during hospitalization but the experimental group received a scheduled telephone interviews after discharge from hospitals. Both groups will have a pre-test before discharge from hospital, a post-test at 1 month, 2 months, and 3 months. Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale (BSES) were used to measure breastfeeding confidence. Results: The repeat measures ANOVA revealed no interaction effect for time by group (F (3, 44) = .71, p=.55). Similarly, there was no significant main effect for time (F (3,44) = .20, p=.90) or for group (F (1,22) = .27, p=.60). The only predictor and positive related to higher scores in BSES was the length of previous breastfeeding (P<.005). Conclusion: Although not a statistically significant difference, there are 23 out of 40 mothers in experimental group still having breastfeeding compared to 1 out of 39 mothers in control group in the third month.