Study Purpose
The Purpose of this study was to learn about the the duration of breastfeeding and to describe the variables influencing breastfeeding practices for 6 months of mothers who gave birth in a suburban community hospital in the United States. It was hoped that the results of this study could provide insight in planning nursing care to promote longer term breastfeeding in this population and enhance the care provided to mothers and babies through improvements to the lactation program.
The site for this study was a 187-bed community hospital located in Northern Virginia with 3200 births/ year. In this institution , lactation consultants and postpartum nurses promote evidence-based breastfeeding practices by educating families on the importance and benefits of breastfeeding for both mother and baby; supplementing