From Expressing Human Milk to Breastfeeding-An Essential Element in the Journey to Motherhood of Mothers of Prematurely Born Infants.
Anne Brødsgaard, Bente Lund Andersen, Diana Skaaning and 1 others
PMID 34923499WHAT IT FOUND
For mothers of premature infants, expressing milk was not just a feeding task but a vital step in becoming a mother.
Nurses who offered practical support, skin-to-skin guidance, and emotional validation helped mothers overcome the stress of the NICU and establish breastfeeding.
Key findings
01Mothers viewed expressing milk as essential for bonding and compensating for the premature birth, often valuing it more than breastfeeding itself.
02Nurses played a critical role by sharing knowledge, offering practical and emotional support, and acknowledging mothers' efforts regardless of their specific choices.
03Skin-to-skin contact helped mothers feel closer to their infants and facilitated the establishment of lactation.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study excluded single mothers and mothers of multiple births, so the findings may not apply to those groups. Most participants were older and had higher levels of education, which may limit how well the results apply to younger mothers or those with less education. The interviews took place months after the NICU stay, so mothers relied on memory, which can be biased. The sample size was small (16 mothers), so the findings are not statistically generalizable.
Declared interests
One author received funding from local Strategic Research Funding at Copenhagen University Hospital. The other authors declared no funding or conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret these themes as evidence that specific nursing interventions improve breastfeeding rates. This study describes how mothers felt about their experiences; it does not measure clinical outcomes or prove that these supportive behaviors cause better lactation results.