Influence of a Breastfeeding Coaching Program on the Breastfeeding Rates and Neonatal Morbidity in Late Preterm Infants

PURPOSE: This study aimed to determine the influence of a breastfeeding coaching program (BCP) for mothers of late preterm infants (LPIs) on the breastfeeding rate and neonatal morbidity within 1 month after discharge. METHODS: This was a non-randomized quasi-experimental study with a time series design. The participants were 40 LPIs and their mothers who were hospitalized in a neonatal intensive care unit at a university hospital. Nineteen LPIs were assigned to the control group, and 21 to the experimental group. The mothers of the LPIs in the experimental group received the BCP once on the discharge day and then once a week for 1 month. Neonatal morbidity was defined as an outpatient department or emergency room visit due to an LPI's health problem. RESULTS: The breastfeeding rate in the experimental group was significantly higher than in the control group at the fourth week after discharge (x(2)=7.17, p=.028). Five and two LPIs in the control group and the experimental group, respectively, visited a hospital due to neonatal jaundice. Neonatal morbidity was not significantly different between the two groups (x(2)=1.95, p=.164). CONCLUSION: The BCP was useful for improving the breastfeeding rates of LPIs and may have potential to reduce neonatal morbidity.