Participant characteristics (n = 2,264).

Ireland has among the lowest rates of breastfeeding worldwide. Despite policies to support breastfeeding, breastfeeding initiation and exclusivity remain low in Ireland. Greater knowledge about support received in the maternity unit may—in part—shed light on why this is so. Our aim was to analyse women’s experiences of the breastfeeding supports available in the early postnatal period in Ireland. We conducted an analysis of an open-ended question on a cross-sectional survey about breastfeeding support conducted in the Republic of Ireland in 2022. Participants were asked to provide comments about the breastfeeding support they received in the maternity unit or during your home birth. Data were analysed using Braun and Clarke’s six-step Thematic Analysis Framework. There were 5,412 unique responses to the survey and 2,264 responses to the question of interest. Two themes were generated from the data: (i) ‘Breastfeeding support in theory but not in practice.’ Although breastfeeding was promoted by healthcare professionals antenatally, breastfeeding challenges were rarely mentioned. Participants then felt unsupported in overcoming challenges postnatally. (ii) ‘Support was either inaccessible due to lack of staff/time, inadequate; i.e., unhelpful or non-specific, and/or physically inappropriate.’ Most participants described receiving supports that were less than optimal in aiding them to establish breastfeeding. While many described difficulties in accessing supports, others found support to be ‘non-specific,’ ‘rushed’ and sometimes ‘rough.’ A lack of knowledge, time and support from healthcare professionals was frequently described, which was often recognised as a failing of the healthcare system. Women require practical, informative, and specific breastfeeding support. Barriers such as lack of time and trained staff in the maternity unit need to be addressed.

爱尔兰是全球母乳喂养率最低的国家之一。尽管已出台多项支持母乳喂养的政策，爱尔兰的母乳喂养启动率与纯母乳喂养率仍处于低位。若能更全面地了解产妇在产科单元获得的支持情况，或可部分阐明这一现状的成因。本研究旨在分析爱尔兰产妇产后早期所获得的母乳喂养支持体验。我们对2022年在爱尔兰共和国开展的一项母乳喂养支持横断面调查中的开放式问题进行了分析。调查要求参与者分享其在产科单元或家庭分娩期间获得的母乳喂养支持相关反馈。本研究采用Braun与Clarke提出的六步主题分析框架对数据进行分析。本次调查共回收5412份独立有效回复，其中针对本研究关注问题的有效回复共2264份。研究从数据中提炼出两大核心主题：其一为“理论层面提供母乳喂养支持，实则并未落地”。尽管医护人员在产前阶段曾推广母乳喂养理念，但极少提及母乳喂养过程中可能遭遇的挑战，导致产妇在产后应对相关难题时深感缺乏支持。其二为“支持服务要么因人员不足、时间紧张难以获取，要么质量欠佳——即支持无效、针对性不足，或/且操作方式不符合实际需求”。多数参与者表示，其所获得的支持在助力建立母乳喂养方面效果不佳。不少参与者提及难以获取所需支持，另有部分人认为相关支持“针对性不足”“过于仓促”，有时甚至“方式粗暴”。研究团队频繁指出，医护人员存在专业知识匮乏、时间不足且支持不到位的问题，这一现象常被认定为医疗体系的疏漏。产妇亟需兼具实用性、指导性与针对性的母乳喂养支持。产科单元存在的人手短缺、缺乏经过专业培训的工作人员等障碍亟待解决。