Zoom meeting applications usage for counseling on breastfeeding: Improving knowledge and attitudes during the COVID-19 Pandemic in West Java, Indonesia

Abstract

Background: Covid-19 is a highly contagious and pathogenic viral infection caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Type 2 (SARS-CoV-2). At the end of March 2020, the President of the Republic of Indonesia issued regulations regarding large-scale social restrictions which require all people to carry out activities from home. These restrictions have an impact on how breast milk is given to babies, especially newborns whose mothers are positive for Covid-19.

Purpose: To determine the effect of health education through online media on the knowledge and attitudes of women of childbearing age in providing breast milk during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Method: Research with a pre-experimental design on 103 women of childbearing age. Research subjects were selected using convenience sampling techniques, while data collection was carried out by filling out a questionnaire using Google Form. Intervention is carried out in the form of text messages, images, online videos. Data analysis used univariate and bivariate with the Chi-Square test.

Results: There were differences before and after the intervention regarding mothers' knowledge and attitudes in providing exclusive breastfeeding to babies during the Covid-19 pandemic using the non-parametric Wilcoxon test with a p-value of 0.001 (p<0.05). This shows that providing online education via the Zoom application is effective in increasing knowledge and attitudes.

Conclusion: The information provided through online media is effective in increasing the knowledge and attitudes of women of childbearing age regarding breastfeeding during the Covid-19 pandemic, so that it can be applied to health education on other topics to improve knowledge and attitudes. On the other hand, there are shortcomings in delivering material virtually, namely the unstable internet network, which makes the speaker's voice intermittent, so that the material given is not conveyed well to the participants.

Suggestion: It is necessary to hold webinars on an ongoing basis with a focus on female partisipants of childbearing age and not from the nursing profession or health workers but also the wider community.