Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA.
University of Nevada, Reno, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.
Breastfeed Med. 2020 Jun;15(6):417-422. doi: 10.1089/bfm.2020.0037. Epub 2020 May 5.
Breastfeeding (BF) duration remains problematic, especially among women returning to work. Given that use of workplace lactation support programs has not gained traction in improving BF duration, there appears to be elements missing from lactation support initiatives that need further exploration. The field of Implementation Science, in explaining organizational behavior, provides an opportunity to inform a better model for workplace BF support. To inform a new model for workplace lactation support, data from the Breastfeeding and Employment Study (BESt) were combined with Implementation Climate theory. BESt surveyed companies on their BF supports, and used hierarchical linear modeling to determine the association of those supports with company employee perceptions of and manager attitudes toward BF supports. Employee scores were not associated with any company scores. Total company scores were associated with more positive manager attitudes ( < 0.01), due to structural supports, or those supports most visible to managers. Considering these results along with other studies, it is proposed that employees and managers are influenced by tangible (physical) as well as intangible (people) workplace lactation supports. Furthermore, strategies are needed to design and implement approaches to these components to increase workplace lactation support and improve BF durations. Implementation strategies will vary with the diversity of workplaces and how they function. A better understanding of the application of implementation climate for workplace lactation support will help tailor programs and their implementation to improve BF duration in employed women.
母乳喂养（BF）的持续时间仍然存在问题，尤其是对于那些返回工作岗位的女性来说。鉴于使用工作场所母乳喂养支持计划并没有在改善母乳喂养持续时间方面取得显著成效，因此似乎需要进一步探索母乳喂养支持计划中缺失的要素。实施科学领域在解释组织行为时，为改进工作场所母乳喂养支持提供了一个机会。为了为工作场所母乳喂养支持提供一个新的模型，我们将母乳喂养和就业研究（BESt）的数据与实施气候理论相结合。BESt 对公司的母乳喂养支持情况进行了调查，并使用分层线性模型来确定这些支持与公司员工对母乳喂养支持的看法和经理对母乳喂养支持的态度之间的关联。员工得分与任何公司得分都没有关联。由于结构支持或那些最容易被经理看到的支持，公司的总分与更积极的经理态度相关（<0.01）。考虑到这些结果以及其他研究，有人提出，员工和经理受到有形（物理）和无形（人员）工作场所母乳喂养支持的影响。此外，需要制定和实施策略来解决这些问题，以增加工作场所母乳喂养支持并改善母乳喂养持续时间。实施策略将因工作场所的多样性及其运作方式而有所不同。更好地了解实施气候在工作场所母乳喂养支持中的应用，将有助于针对特定工作场所制定和实施计划，以改善就业女性的母乳喂养持续时间。
