Authors (including presenting author) :
Chan LSL (1), Lau LF (1), Lau WL (1)
Affiliation :
(1) Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, Kwong Wah Hospital
Introduction :
The decision of the infant feeding choice of a new mother is multifactorial. Since 2010, the Hospital Authority (HA) has been promoting breastfeeding. In 2024, the 8 HA birthing hospitals have been awarded the Baby-Friendly Hospital designation. The baby-friendly hospital initiative supports informed infant feeding decisions, but the exclusive breastfeeding rate has drastically decreased and the artificial feeding rate increased over the past 5 years.
Objectives :
To understand the women's views and knowledge on infant feeding
To identify the gaps between hospital practice and women's needs
Methodology :
Anonymous self-reporting non-randomized electronic survey was used to collect (1) Personal Data; (2) Women's opinions; (3) Women's views and beliefs; and (4) Written comments or feedback.
Result & Outcome :
Between 16 September 2024 and 11 January 2025, there were 68 women participated in the survey. One-third of the women were over 35 years old. Over half of them were multipara. Over 35% have tertiary education or above. Over 90% were Hong Kong Chinese. Most indicated baby care was supported by partners, parents, in-laws, and domestic helpers, but 5.9% indicated they were lack of support. Over 80% agreed that the antenatal information on infant feeding was just right, but around 16% found the information too much for them. Almost all of them knew that breast milk was the best food for their babies, but still chose artificial feeding. The main reasons for choosing artificial feeding include personal experience and preference, plan to leave the baby to family members for feeding, advice from friends and peers, and personal or others' bad breastfeeding experiences. Over 10% indicated that they would have mixed feeding (both artificial feeding and breastfeeding).
The findings revealed that they had many myths and misconceptions. For instance, breastfeeding is easier after milk comes in; formula milk has better nutritional value than breast milk; new mothers usually have insufficient milk and require formula supplementation at night.
The survey identified some issues that the hospital has to deal with. First, antenatal infant feeding education has to be family-based and involve all family members. Second, special attention and timely referrals are required for single mothers. Third, the image of the hospital has to be promoted as a friendly supportive healthcare organization to avoid exerting unnecessary stress on the women. And, the information on the risks of formula supplementation has to pass to all women to facilitate informed choice.
A survey inviting all women who gave birth in the 8 HA birthing hospitals is recommended to investigate the effectiveness of the current baby-friendly practice and identify the gaps in supporting breastfeeding.
