Breastfeeding-oriented education for parturients separated from their hospitalized infants: a qualitative study of nurses’ perspectives in Shanghai, China

BACKGROUND: The benefits of breastfeeding for both mother and baby are well recognized. However, the separation of the mother-newborn dyad leads to a lower breastfeeding rate. These parturients who are separated from their hospitalized infants are sometimes unaware of the importance of breastfeeding, while nurses do know how important health education on breastfeeding is and how it can be improved. This descriptive qualitative study aimed to explore the experiences of nurses regarding health education on breastfeeding and summarize the potential ways to improve it. METHODS: A descriptive phenomenological qualitative approach was utilized in this study, and in-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted with nurses at a tertiary A-grade obstetrics-and gynecology-specialized hospital in Shanghai, China. The purposive and snowball sampling method was used and Colaizzi’s seven-step phenomenological analysis was employed. The Consolidated criteria for Reporting Qualitative research (COREQ) was followed to report findings. RESULTS: Fifteen nurses participated in the study and shared their suggestions based on their experiences. Four overarching themes emerged from the data: (1) extending the education duration, (2) enriching the educational content, (3) expanding the education subjects, and (4) perfecting the educational process. Each theme included several subthemes. CONCLUSION: Health education on breastfeeding should focus on the time, content, subjects, and process as a whole. The nurses’ statements provided a reference for nursing or hospital supervisors to take measures to improve education and increase the breastfeeding rate of hospitalized neonates. Further research from the perspectives of parturients and their family members is needed, to find out what the key points are that all of them attach importance to. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12884-022-05227-4.