- Gebrekidan, Kahsu, Fooladi, Ensieh, Plummer, Virginia, Hall, Helen
- Authors: Gebrekidan, Kahsu , Fooladi, Ensieh , Plummer, Virginia , Hall, Helen
- Date: 2020
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare Vol. 25, no. (2020), p.
- Full Text: false
- Reviewed:
- Description: Objective: This systematic review and narrative synthesis aims to explore the specific facilitators and barriers of exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) among employed mothers in low and lower middle-income countries. Methods: Primary quantitative and qualitative studies undertaken in low and lower middle-income countries published from 2003 to 2019 were included in the review. Two reviewers independently assessed each article for eligibility using standardized critical appraisal instruments from the Joanna Briggs Institute. Results: Seven papers were included in this review. The enabler and barrier factors to EBF are summarized into three categories including maternal factors (such as mode of delivery, number of children, knowledge and attitude on breastfeeding), social factors (such as support from husband, family and child day care), and work-related factors (such as duration of maternal leave, flexibility of work, and availability of physical facilities). Conclusion: To increase EBF among employed women, employers should support them by offering flexible working hours, a minimum of six months maternity leave and providing breastfeeding facilities. Support from family and maternal factors were important factors that could positively affect EBF. Identification of modifiable barrier and facilitator factors may contribute to successful EBF in employed women thereby reducing mortality and morbidity in countries with limited resources. © 2020
Work-related factors affecting exclusive breastfeeding among employed women in ethiopia : managers’ perspective using a qualitative approach
- Gebrekidan, Kahsu, Plummer, Virginia, Fooladi, Ensieh, Hall, Helen
- Authors: Gebrekidan, Kahsu , Plummer, Virginia , Fooladi, Ensieh , Hall, Helen
- Date: 2020
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: International Journal of Women's Health Vol. 12, no. (2020), p. 473-480
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Background: Only 21% of employed mothers in Ethiopia breastfeed exclusively until six months. Evidence from other countries has shown that support from managers encourages mothers to continue breastfeeding. Whereas lack of physical resources, time for breastfeed-ing and supportive policies adversely impact the continuation of breastfeeding. The aim of this study was to explore the perspective of managers regarding breastfeeding in the Ethiopian context. Methods: Managers of district level, government institutions were interviewed in the Tigray region of North Ethiopia. Semi-structured, face to face interviews were used to explore managers’ perspectives and views about breastfeeding, the level of support they provide to breastfeeding mothers, and the challenges they faced. The data were transcribed verbatim and thematically analysed. Results: Fifteen managers were interviewed from 12 organizations. The data were categor-ized into three themes. The first theme related to the attitudes and preference of managers and revealed that overall participants had positive views towards breastfeeding. The second theme highlighted managers’ concern about the impact of breastfeeding on staffing and workplace productivity. The third theme focused on managers’ assertions that, despite improvements, there were still inadequate policies and government strategies to support employed breastfeeding women in North Ethiopia. Conclusion: It is promising that managers in North Ethiopia expressed a positive attitude towards supporting breastfeeding mothers. Managers raised concern about the impact of breastfeeding on work performance, as well as the lack of physical facilities and government resources that affects the level of support they can provide. © 2020 Gebrekidan et al.
- Authors: Gebrekidan, Kahsu , Plummer, Virginia , Fooladi, Ensieh , Hall, Helen
- Date: 2020
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: International Journal of Women's Health Vol. 12, no. (2020), p. 473-480
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Background: Only 21% of employed mothers in Ethiopia breastfeed exclusively until six months. Evidence from other countries has shown that support from managers encourages mothers to continue breastfeeding. Whereas lack of physical resources, time for breastfeed-ing and supportive policies adversely impact the continuation of breastfeeding. The aim of this study was to explore the perspective of managers regarding breastfeeding in the Ethiopian context. Methods: Managers of district level, government institutions were interviewed in the Tigray region of North Ethiopia. Semi-structured, face to face interviews were used to explore managers’ perspectives and views about breastfeeding, the level of support they provide to breastfeeding mothers, and the challenges they faced. The data were transcribed verbatim and thematically analysed. Results: Fifteen managers were interviewed from 12 organizations. The data were categor-ized into three themes. The first theme related to the attitudes and preference of managers and revealed that overall participants had positive views towards breastfeeding. The second theme highlighted managers’ concern about the impact of breastfeeding on staffing and workplace productivity. The third theme focused on managers’ assertions that, despite improvements, there were still inadequate policies and government strategies to support employed breastfeeding women in North Ethiopia. Conclusion: It is promising that managers in North Ethiopia expressed a positive attitude towards supporting breastfeeding mothers. Managers raised concern about the impact of breastfeeding on work performance, as well as the lack of physical facilities and government resources that affects the level of support they can provide. © 2020 Gebrekidan et al.
Attitudes and experiences of employed women when combining exclusive breastfeeding and work : a qualitative study among office workers in Northern Ethiopia
- Gebrekidan, Kahsu, Plummer, Virginia, Fooladi, Ensieh, Hall, Helen
- Authors: Gebrekidan, Kahsu , Plummer, Virginia , Fooladi, Ensieh , Hall, Helen
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Maternal and Child Nutrition Vol. 17, no. 4 (2021), p.
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Evidence from different countries shows that the level of support given to mothers who return to paid employment can significantly determine the duration of exclusive breastfeeding (EBF). However, little is known about how returning to work impacts Ethiopian women's EBF practice. The aim of this study was to explore women's attitudes and experiences of EBF when they returned to work. Mothers who had an infant of less than 12 months, working in government institutions in Tigray region, Ethiopia, were invited to participate in this study. Semi-structured, face-to-face interviews were used to explore mothers' perspectives of the factors that influenced EBF when they returned to work. The interview data were transcribed verbatim and thematically analysed. Twenty mothers were interviewed from 10 organizations. Three themes were identified from their accounts: mother's knowledge, attitudes and practice towards breastfeeding; workplace context and employment conditions; and support received at home. Most participants were familiar with the benefits of EBF. Most participants reported that their colleagues had more positive attitudes towards breastfeeding than their managers. In almost all the workplaces, there was no specific designated breastfeeding space. Participants reported that close family members including husbands and mothers were supportive. Mothers' knowledge and attitude towards breastfeeding, workplace and employment conditions and support received at home were found to be the main factors determining the duration of EBF among employed women. Participants reported that the overall support given to breastfeeding women from their employers was insufficient to promote EBF. © 2021 The Authors. Maternal & Child Nutrition published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
- Authors: Gebrekidan, Kahsu , Plummer, Virginia , Fooladi, Ensieh , Hall, Helen
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Maternal and Child Nutrition Vol. 17, no. 4 (2021), p.
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Evidence from different countries shows that the level of support given to mothers who return to paid employment can significantly determine the duration of exclusive breastfeeding (EBF). However, little is known about how returning to work impacts Ethiopian women's EBF practice. The aim of this study was to explore women's attitudes and experiences of EBF when they returned to work. Mothers who had an infant of less than 12 months, working in government institutions in Tigray region, Ethiopia, were invited to participate in this study. Semi-structured, face-to-face interviews were used to explore mothers' perspectives of the factors that influenced EBF when they returned to work. The interview data were transcribed verbatim and thematically analysed. Twenty mothers were interviewed from 10 organizations. Three themes were identified from their accounts: mother's knowledge, attitudes and practice towards breastfeeding; workplace context and employment conditions; and support received at home. Most participants were familiar with the benefits of EBF. Most participants reported that their colleagues had more positive attitudes towards breastfeeding than their managers. In almost all the workplaces, there was no specific designated breastfeeding space. Participants reported that close family members including husbands and mothers were supportive. Mothers' knowledge and attitude towards breastfeeding, workplace and employment conditions and support received at home were found to be the main factors determining the duration of EBF among employed women. Participants reported that the overall support given to breastfeeding women from their employers was insufficient to promote EBF. © 2021 The Authors. Maternal & Child Nutrition published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Exclusive breastfeeding continuation and associated factors among employed women in North Ethiopia : a cross-sectional study
- Gebrekidan, Kahsu, Hall, Helen, Plummer, Virginia, Fooladi, Ensieh
- Authors: Gebrekidan, Kahsu , Hall, Helen , Plummer, Virginia , Fooladi, Ensieh
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: PLoS ONE Vol. 16, no. 7 (2021), p.
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Background Exclusive Breastfeeding (EBF) can prevent up to 13% of under-five mortality in developing countries. In Sub-Saharan Africa the rate of EBF at six months remains very low at 36%. Different types of factors such as maternal, family and work-related factors are responsible for the low rate of EBF among employed women. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of EBF continuation and associated factors among employed women in North Ethiopia. Materials and methods A community-based, cross-sectional study was conducted in two towns of Tigray region, North Ethiopia. Employed women who had children between six months and two years were surveyed using multistage, convenience sampling. Women filled in a paper based validated questionnaire adopted from the Breastfeeding and Employment Study toolkit (BESt). The questions were grouped into four parts of sociodemographic characteristics, maternal characteristics, family support and work-related factors. Factors associated with EBF continuation as a binary outcome (yes/no) were determined using multivariable logistic regression. Results Four-hundred and forty-nine women participated in this study with a mean (SD) age 30.4 (4.2) years. Two hundred and fifty-four (56.4%) participants exclusively breastfed their children for six months or more. The main reason for discontinuation of EBF was the requirement of women to return to paid employment (31.5%). Four-hundred and forty (98.2%) participants believed that breastfeeding has benefits either to the infant or to the mother. Three hundred and seventy-one (82.8%) of the participants received support from their family at home to assist with EBF, most commonly from their husbands and mothers. Having family support (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 2.1, 95%, CI 1.2–3.6; P = 0.005), having frequent breaks at work (AOR = 2.6, 95% CI, 1.4–4.8; P = 0.002) and the possibility of buying or borrowing required equipment for expressing breast milk (AOR = 1.7, 95% CI, 1.0–3.0; P = 0.033) were statistically associated with an increased chance of EBF. Conclusion Although returning to work was reported by the study participants as the main reason for discontinuation of EBF, families and managers’ support play significant roles in EBF continuation, which in the absence of six-month’s maternity leave for employed women in Ethiopia would be of benefit to both mothers and children. © 2021 Gebrekidan et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
- Authors: Gebrekidan, Kahsu , Hall, Helen , Plummer, Virginia , Fooladi, Ensieh
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: PLoS ONE Vol. 16, no. 7 (2021), p.
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Background Exclusive Breastfeeding (EBF) can prevent up to 13% of under-five mortality in developing countries. In Sub-Saharan Africa the rate of EBF at six months remains very low at 36%. Different types of factors such as maternal, family and work-related factors are responsible for the low rate of EBF among employed women. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of EBF continuation and associated factors among employed women in North Ethiopia. Materials and methods A community-based, cross-sectional study was conducted in two towns of Tigray region, North Ethiopia. Employed women who had children between six months and two years were surveyed using multistage, convenience sampling. Women filled in a paper based validated questionnaire adopted from the Breastfeeding and Employment Study toolkit (BESt). The questions were grouped into four parts of sociodemographic characteristics, maternal characteristics, family support and work-related factors. Factors associated with EBF continuation as a binary outcome (yes/no) were determined using multivariable logistic regression. Results Four-hundred and forty-nine women participated in this study with a mean (SD) age 30.4 (4.2) years. Two hundred and fifty-four (56.4%) participants exclusively breastfed their children for six months or more. The main reason for discontinuation of EBF was the requirement of women to return to paid employment (31.5%). Four-hundred and forty (98.2%) participants believed that breastfeeding has benefits either to the infant or to the mother. Three hundred and seventy-one (82.8%) of the participants received support from their family at home to assist with EBF, most commonly from their husbands and mothers. Having family support (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 2.1, 95%, CI 1.2–3.6; P = 0.005), having frequent breaks at work (AOR = 2.6, 95% CI, 1.4–4.8; P = 0.002) and the possibility of buying or borrowing required equipment for expressing breast milk (AOR = 1.7, 95% CI, 1.0–3.0; P = 0.033) were statistically associated with an increased chance of EBF. Conclusion Although returning to work was reported by the study participants as the main reason for discontinuation of EBF, families and managers’ support play significant roles in EBF continuation, which in the absence of six-month’s maternity leave for employed women in Ethiopia would be of benefit to both mothers and children. © 2021 Gebrekidan et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
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