The purpose of this study was to compare the efficacy of two educational interventions to enhance breastfeeding knowledge among senior medical students. One intervention consisted of a traditional face-to-face teaching lecture and the other consisted of the use of a smartphone application containing information about breastfeeding.
A quasi-experimental study was performed. Students were allocated to two groups; the first group underwent a 6-hour face-to-face breastfeeding course which was divided in four 1.5-hour sessions during a time span of two weeks. The second intervention consisted of downloading a digital smartphone application designed by the research team to teach proper breastfeeding concepts which participants freely navigated during the same time span of two weeks. Before and after each intervention, students answered a general breastfeeding knowledge test consisting of twenty multiple choice answers with a score range of 0 to 20. Statistical comparisons between pre- and post-test scores were performed in each group and mean change in scores was compared between them to establish which method was the most efficient. Moreover, amount of time spent on the application was descriptively measured.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
NON_RANDOMIZED
Purpose
OTHER
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
438
This intervention consists of a smartphone application which contains relevant information and topics regarding proper breastfeeding knowledge for medical students.
This intervention consists of the impartition of a face-to-face breastfeeding course
Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon
Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico
Efficacy of each breastfeeding course evaluated by a quantitative general knowledge questionnaire
In order to measure this outcome, all participants answered a test consisting of a quantitative questionnaire of general breastfeeding knowledge before and after the intervention. This general knowledge test consisted of twenty questions with multiple choice answers ranging between two to five possible answers according to the nature of the question. It was designed by study researchers which included specialists in Pediatrics and breastfeeding and it was based solely on the course content. Minimum and maximum scores were 0 and 20, where a higher score indicated a better grade on the test. Central tendency and dispersion measures were obtained for pre- and post-test scores and a further statistical comparison between this parameters indicated whether there was a statistically significant difference. If the post-test score was statistically superior to the pre-test score, it was concluded that the intervention was efficient to improve breastfeeding knowledge.
Time frame: 14 days
Comparison of the efficacy of each breastfeeding course by comparison of mean differences
In order to measure this outcome, a mean difference between the post-test and pre-test scores was obtained for each group. Furthermore, these mean differences were compared to establish if the mean improvement in test scores was different between both interventions. If the mean change of one intervention was statistically superior to the other, it was assumed that the former intervention was more efficient to promote breastfeeding knowledge. On the contrary, if no statistical differences between the effects of both interventions on test scores were observed, it was assumed that no intervention was superior to the other.
Time frame: 14 days
Amount of time in minutes spent on the smartphone application
Study researchers had access to the amount of time in minutes that each student dedicated to studying on the smartphone application. Descriptive statistics with central and dispersion tendencies were obtained to evaluate this outcome.
Time frame: 14 days
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