Evaluation of a peer counselling programme to sustain breastfeeding practice in Hong Kong.
BACKGROUND
Peer counselling is reported to increase breastfeeding rates. We evaluated an intervention consisting of mainly telephone contact peer counselling programme on breastfeeding duration and exclusivity.


METHODS
Peer counsellors (PCs) were mothers who had successfully breastfed and had received formal training. Following a postnatal visit, they provided scheduled telephone consultations (Days 1, 4, 7, Weeks 2, 4, 8, and Month 4) to PC group mothers (n = 100) who continued breastfeeding their infants after discharge. Control group mothers (n = 100) received routine care.


RESULTS
After adjusting for mothers' previous breastfeeding experiences, mothers' working status and breastfeeding problems, no statistical differences in mothers' feeding methods (exclusive, almost exclusive or predominant breastfeeding) were noted at the three follow-up times for intervention and control mothers respectively (Day 5: 37%/38%, 46%/53%, 57%/63%; Month 3: 10%/9%, 17%/23%, 20%/26%; Month 6: 2%/1%, 18%/18%, 18%/19%). All differences between the groups were not significant. Also, there was no evidence to suggest that PC intervention prolonged breastfeeding duration.


CONCLUSIONS
The lack of effect of our PC intervention may reflect the low baseline breastfeeding rate and low value placed on breastfeeding in our population, the type of PC intervention or group allocation biases.


BACKGROUND
ISRCTN93605280.
Wong
Esther Hy
EH
Department of Paediatrics, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong. tony-nelson@cuhk.edu.hk.
Nelson
Eas
E
Choi
Kai-Chow
KC
Wong
Kin-Ping
KP
Ip
Carmen
C
Ho
Lau-Cheung
LC