Breastfeeding provides the optimal nourishment for infant and child health and supporting mothers to breastfeed is a global health priority. Midwives are uniquely placed to provide breastfeeding education and support to the woman and it is imperative that they have a sound understanding of the physiological underpinnings of breastfeeding. However, midwifery students and some midwives continue to struggle with the complex physiology of lactation. The purpose of this study was to evaluate an instructional animation resource to teach breastfeeding physiology to student and practicing midwives. Further, this study also offers insights into how student and practicing midwives accept novel approaches to learning. A cross-sectional survey design using both quantitative and qualitative approaches was employed in this proof of concept study. The setting was online with midwifery students recruited from Deakin University and registered midwives recruited from the Australian College of Midwives membership. Snowball sampling was also employed to recruit midwives through professional networks of the research team. The quantitative part of this study included a structured online questionnaire for midwives and midwifery students and descriptive statistics were used to present the quantitative data. The qualitative data were collected from open-ended questions on the questionnaire and a deductive approach was used for analysing the data. This proof of concept study collected data from 110 participants and provides evidence for the use of animation as an effective pedagogical tool to explain complex concepts. The animated instructional resource was viewed favourably by both the midwifery students and practicing midwives. The findings from this study, support the pedagogical advantages of animated instructional resources for teaching complex physiology. Further, educators should be encouraged and feel confident to develop and use animation technology as both an engaging and effective teaching resource especially for complex concepts.

中文翻译：

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使用动画教授母乳喂养生理学：概念验证研究


母乳喂养为婴儿和儿童的健康提供了最佳营养，支持母亲母乳喂养是全球健康的优先事项。助产士在向妇女提供母乳喂养教育和支持方面具有独特的地位，她们必须对母乳喂养的生理基础有充分的了解。然而，助产专业的学生和一些助产士仍然在与哺乳的复杂生理学作斗争。本研究的目的是评估向学生和执业助产士教授母乳喂养生理学的教学动画资源。此外，这项研究还深入了解了学生和执业助产士如何接受新颖的学习方法。本次概念验证研究采用了采用定量和定性方法的横断面调查设计。该设置是在线的，从迪肯大学招募的助产士学生和从澳大利亚助产士学院会员招募的注册助产士。研究团队还采用滚雪球抽样的方式，通过专业网络招募助产士。本研究的定量部分包括针对助产士和助产学学生的结构化在线调查问卷，并使用描述性统计来呈现定量数据。定性数据是从问卷中的开放式问题中收集的，并使用演绎方法来分析数据。这项概念验证研究收集了 110 名参与者的数据，并为使用动画作为解释复杂概念的有效教学工具提供了证据。动画教学资源受到助产士学生和执业助产士的好评。 这项研究的结果支持了动画教学资源在复杂生理学教学中的教学优势。此外，应鼓励教育工作者并有信心开发和使用动画技术作为一种引人入胜且有效的教学资源，特别是对于复杂的概念。