Developing and testing an online breastfeeding training among undergraduate nursing students

Abstract

The benefits of breastfeeding for mothers and babies have been well documented in the scientific literature, with new evidenceabout the benefits continuing to emerge. The Surgeon General’s call to action to support breastfeeding recommends mandatorybreastfeeding education and training for all healthcare providers that deliver care to mothers and babies. The purpose of thisstudy is to analyze the development of an online computer based breastfeeding training (BT) and the preliminary outcomesof this training. The development of this training included consultation with content and technology experts. The collectionof preliminary outcomes related to breastfeeding knowledge data and evaluation of the online BT was pre and posttest study.Eighty six undergraduate nursing students completed the online BT using Blackboard Learn. The online component of the BTconsisted of five modules with a combined length of approximately 16 hours. After the completion of the modules, the studentsincreased their levels of knowledge related to breastfeeding and the majority believed that they were fully able to perform skillsto support breastfeeding. The results of this study indicate that a successful BT for nursing students can be effectively designed,which can in the future be disseminated to other healthcare providers and students. In addition, this online BT was cost-efficientand effective in improving students’ knowledge and skills to support breastfeeding.