ArticleInternational breastfeeding journal2020
Are the doctors of the future ready to support breastfeeding? A cross-sectional study in the UK.
Article in International breastfeeding journal, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers.
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Who cites it
14 citing papers in PubMed.
- Barriers and Facilitators to the Implementation and Scale-Up of the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative: A Qualitative Study in Saskatchewan, Canada.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Breastfeeding and complementary feeding knowledge scale: a validated tool for health sciences education.BMC medical education · 2026Article
- Current Breastfeeding Attitudes, Knowledge and Confidence of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists in Australia and New Zealand.The Australian & New Zealand journal of obstetrics & gynaecology · 2026Article
- Distance learning on breastfeeding for residents in pediatrics.European journal of pediatrics · 2025Observational
- The Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative and Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding programs: applying the Non-adoption, Abandonment, Spread, Scale up, Sustainability (NASSS) health technology adoption framework to analyze challenges to hospital implementation in Australia and Indonesia.International breastfeeding journal · 2025Article
- Examining Sociocultural Influences on Breastfeeding Attitudes Among Syrian and Hungarian Female Students.Nutrients · 2025Article
- Article
- Breastfeeding and its dimensions: an integrative review of health students' knowledge.Revista brasileira de enfermagem · 2025Review
- Stakeholder Perspectives on Research, Policy and Practice Priorities to Increase Human Milk Feeding Rates in the United Kingdom.Journal of human lactation : official journal of International Lactation Consultant Association · 2024Article
- A co-designed evaluation study to identify Breastfeeding Knowledge of General Practitioners' and Practice Nurses'.Health promotion international · 2024Article
- 'I don't want to be a guinea pig' - Swedish women's experiences of breast abscess treatment.BMC women's health · 2024Article
- The Influence of Participation in Pregnancy Courses and Breastfeeding Support Groups on Attitudes and Knowledge of Health Professionals about Breastfeeding.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Newborn Feeding Knowledge and Attitudes among Medical Students.European journal of investigation in health, psychology and education · 2023Article
- Advertising of Human Milk Substitutes in United Kingdom Healthcare Professional Publications: An Observational Study.Journal of human lactation : official journal of International Lactation Consultant Association · 2021Observational
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundCurrently there is no published data on the inclusion of breastfeeding education within the UK medical school curriculum. This study aims to address this knowledge gap and explore students' perceptions of their readiness to support breastfeeding.
methodsAn online survey was used to collect data from 32 UK undergraduate medical schools and their students. All students in their final two years of study at the 30 universities offering a 5- or 6-year medicine course, were eligible.
resultsCurriculum data was obtained from 26 (81%) institutions. Compulsory breastfeeding education was provided by 85% (N = 22) institutions with 81% (n = 21) providing lecture-based teaching and 19% (n = 5) offering formal clinical education. Overall, 411 students from 22 institutions participated. A moderate ability to identify the benefits of breastfeeding was observed; however, self-rated confidence in practical skills was poor. Assisting with latching was the least confident skill, with confidence in only 3% (14/411) students. Most students (93%) viewed doctors as playing an important role in breastfeeding, with those interested in either women's health, paediatrics or general practice perceiving the role of doctors as more important. Overall, 93% (381/411) students requested further breastfeeding education.
conclusionsThis study suggests UK medical schools are not adequately preparing students to support breastfeeding patients. Further studies should explore the competency of doctors to meet the needs of lactating women, and design optimal training for UK medical students.
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