Effects of a Breastfeeding Training Course on the 5 th Year Medical Student; Knowledge, Attitudes and Skills for Breastfeeding Support

Background: Health professionals lack the knowledge, attitudes and skills for breastfeeding support. Objective:  To find the effects of breastfeeding training course on the 5th year medical students’ knowledge, attitudes and skills for breastfeeding support. Material and Method: The subjects were 5 th year medical students at the Faculty of Medicine, Srinakharinwirot University. A breastfeeding training course and questionnaires regarding the knowledge, attitudes and skills for breastfeeding support were set up. Pretest and posttest questionnaires for breastfeeding support were assessed before and after the breastfeeding training course. Demographic data, knowledge, attitude and skill scores were collected and analyzed by Chi-square, paired t-test and the Pearson correlation. Results: The knowledge, attitude and skill scores totals 40, 30 and 120 points. The averages of the knowledge, attitude and skill scores before the breastfeeding training course were at 23.1 ± 3.4, 26.0 ± 3.8 and 45.0 ± 18.0 points, respectively. The averages after the breastfeeding training course were 30.7 ± 2.9, 27.6 ± 2.9 and 100.2 ± 10.1 points, respectively. The score differences between the pretest and posttest results were statistically significant ( p <0.001). Conclusion: The breastfeeding training course improved the knowledge, attitudes and skills in the 5 th year medical student. Keywords: Attitudes and skills, Breastfeeding training course, Knowledge, Medical student