ArticleBMJ open2012
The FEeding Support Team (FEST) randomised, controlled feasibility trial of proactive and reactive telephone support for breastfeeding women living in disadvantaged areas.
Article in BMJ open, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 34 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
34 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Methods of assessing value for money of UK-based early childhood public health interventions: a systematic literature review.British medical bulletin · 2023Pooled it
- Support for healthy breastfeeding mothers with healthy term babies.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2022Pooled it
- Remote provision of breastfeeding support and education: Systematic review and meta-analysis.Maternal & child nutrition · 2022Pooled it
- Support for healthy breastfeeding mothers with healthy term babies.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2017Pooled it
- Breastfeeding education and support for women with twins or higher order multiples.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2017Pooled it
- Telephone support for women during pregnancy and the first six weeks postpartum.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2013Pooled it
- Peer support intervention (ABA-feed) to improve breastfeeding: UK based, multicentre, parallel group, randomised controlled trial.BMJ (Clinical research ed.) · 2026Trial
- Exploring the use and experience of an infant feeding genogram to facilitate an assets-based approach to support infant feeding.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2020Trial
- Effects of Telephone and Short Message Service Support on Infant Feeding Practices, "Tummy Time," and Screen Time at 6 and 12 Months of Child Age: A 3-Group Randomized Clinical Trial.JAMA pediatrics · 2020Trial
- Cost-effectiveness of offering an area-level financial incentive on breast feeding: a within-cluster randomised controlled trial analysis.Archives of disease in childhood · 2020Trial
- Breastfeeding and risk for ceasing in mothers of preterm infants-Long-term follow-up.Maternal & child nutrition · 2018Trial
- Proactive telephone support provided to breastfeeding mothers of preterm infants after discharge: a randomised controlled trial.Acta paediatrica (Oslo, Norway : 1992) · 2018Trial
- Trial
- The effectiveness of proactive telephone support provided to breastfeeding mothers of preterm infants: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.BMC pediatrics · 2013Trial
- Co-Development of an Evidence-Based Breastfeeding Support Intervention, Optimised for Delivery in Healthcare Settings, and Adaptations for Mothers With Long-Term Conditions: The Action for Breastfeeding (A4B) Programme.Maternal & child nutrition · 2026Article
- A scoping review of costing methodologies used to assess interventions for underserved pregnant people and new parents.International journal for equity in health · 2024Article
- The Marri Gudjaga project: a study protocol for a randomised control trial using Aboriginal peer support workers to promote breastfeeding of Aboriginal babies.BMC public health · 2023Article
- Observational
- Who Gets to Breastfeed? A Narrative Ecological Analysis of Women's Infant Feeding Experiences in the UK.Frontiers in sociology · 2022Article
- Women's and peer supporters' experiences of an assets-based peer support intervention for increasing breastfeeding initiation and continuation: A qualitative study.Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveTo assess the feasibility of implementing a dedicated feeding support team on a postnatal ward and pilot the potential effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of team (proactive) and woman-initiated (reactive) telephone support after discharge.
designRandomised controlled trial embedded within a before-and-after study. Participatory approach and mixed-method process evaluation.
settingA postnatal ward in Scotland. SAMPLE: Women living in disadvantaged areas initiating breast feeding.
methodsEligible women were recruited to a before-and-after intervention study, a proportion of whom were independently randomised after hospital discharge to intervention: daily proactive and reactive telephone calls for ≤14 days or control: reactive telephone calls ≤ day 14. Intention-to-treat analysis compared the randomised groups on cases with complete outcomes at follow-up.
main outcome measuresPRIMARY OUTCOME: any breast feeding at 6-8 weeks assessed by a telephone call from a researcher blind to group allocation. SECONDARY OUTCOMES: exclusive breast feeding, satisfaction with care, NHS costs and cost per additional woman breast feeding.
resultsThere was no difference in feeding outcomes for women initiating breast feeding before the intervention (n=413) and after (n=388). 69 women were randomised to telephone support: 35 intervention (32 complete cases) and 34 control (26 complete cases). 22 intervention women compared with 12 control women were giving their baby some breast milk (RR 1.49, 95% CI 0.92 to 2.40) and 17 intervention women compared with eight control women were exclusively breast feeding (RR 1.73, 95% CI 0.88 to 3.37) at 6-8 weeks after birth. The incremental cost of providing proactive calls was £87 per additional woman breast feeding and £91 per additional woman exclusively breast feeding at 6-8 weeks; costs were sensitive to service organisation.
conclusionsProactive telephone care delivered by a dedicated feeding team shows promise as a cost-effective intervention for improving breastfeeding outcomes. Integrating the FEeding Support Team (FEST) intervention into routine postnatal care was feasible. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: ISRCTN27207603. The study protocol and final report are available on request.
Identifiers
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.