Abstract
Mother's own milk (MOM) reduces complications of preterm birth. Despite high initiation rates of expression, half of preterm infants do not receive MOM at discharge. Frequent outreach and a short message service (SMS) have improved MOM provision in term dyads. We aimed to improve MOM provision rate from 61% to >80% by implementing standardized lactation education and Breastfeeding & Lactation Outreach via SMS Supporting Mothers (BLOSSoM). METHODS: The baseline period was June 2019 to April 2020. A multidisciplinary team implemented PDSA cycles: education/documentation (standardized lactation education and education documentation, May 2020-April 2021), and BLOSSoM (SMS program providing educational texts/videos, reminders, 2-way communication with neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) lactation, May 2021-December 2021). The primary outcome was MOM provision at NICU discharge/transfer for infants younger than 34 weeks, as analyzed on the SPC chart. BLOSSoM participants evaluated the program using a 5-point Likert scale. RESULTS: Demographic and clinical characteristics were unchanged among the three periods. However, the monthly MOM provision rate improved from 61% to 81%. Eighty-seven percent of BLOSSoM participants completed the evaluation with 83% rating the program most supportive, 78% rating the videos as the most helpful, followed by team check-ins (54%) and 2-way texting (24%). CONCLUSIONS: Using a multidisciplinary approach, we improved the monthly MOM provision rate at discharge/transfer for preterm infants. SMS providing educational texts/media and 2-way communication supporting lactating NICU mothers was critical to our success. Providing another method of communication through SMS was well accepted and valued by the majority.