A qualitative study exploring first time mothers’ experiences of breastfeeding in Singapore:

摘要

Background:The exclusive breastfeeding rate (for the first 6 months of a baby’s life) remained low in Singapore despite active promotion of breastfeeding by government bodies and hospitals. The aim of this study was to explore the breastfeeding experiences of first time mothers and the difficulties they faced during their breastfeeding period.Methods:A qualitative descriptive study design was adopted. Participants were chosen from a purposive sampling technique and data were collected from 10 semi-structured in-depth interviews. All interviews conducted were audio-taped and transcribed verbatim. Interview transcriptions were analysed using the qualitative content analysis approach.Results:The breastfeeding period of the 10 first time mothers in this study ranged from 3 days to 10 months, and four participants were still breastfeeding at the time of interview (4–12 months after delivery). The interview transcriptions generated 54 nodes, 12 sub-themes and four key themes. The four key themes identified were...