“Willingness To Practice Exclusive Breastfeeding And Associated Factors Among Mothers Providing Kangaroo Mother Care For Infants In Addis Ababa City Public Hospitals, Ethiopia, 2025”

Abstract

Background: Globally rates of exclusive breastfeeding in the first six months of life have increased by 10 percentage points over the past decade and are at 48% for 2023 against target of 70% set by global breastfeeding collective by 2030. Kangaroo Mother Care promotes skin to skin contact and encourages breastfeeding, yet many mothers do not exclusively breastfeed despite its known benefits. Many studies focus on exclusive breastfeeding practices among mothers, but fewer focuses on willingness to practice exclusive breastfeeding. Objective: The objective of this study is to assess the willingness to practice exclusive breastfeeding and associated factors among mothers providing KMC to their infants at public hospitals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 2025. Methods: - A cross-sectional study design was employed among 417 mothers providing KMC to their infants using consecutive sampling techniques. The study was conducted at public hospitals in Addis Ababa City from June 16 to July 15 2025. Data were collected by using pre-tested structured questionnaire. Descriptive statistics (mean, SD, frequency), Bivariable and multivariable logistic regression analysis were employed to identify predictors of willingness to practice EBF among mother providing KMC for their infants. Hosmer-Lemeshow test and multicollinearity among independent variables were assumed during the analysis. Results: Out of 402 participants, 65.7% (95% CI; 60.8%-70.3%) were willing to exclusively breastfeed their infants. Mothers with prior breastfeeding experience (AOR = 3.102; 95% CI: 2.206-5.061 p = 0.01), mothers who had workplace support (AOR = 3.140 CI: 1.942-5.170, P=0.025), mothers who believed that breast milk alone is enough (AOR = 5.715; 95% CI: 4.121 8.281 p = 0.01) and mothers who feel confident in their ability (AOR = 2.027 CI: 1.602-3.814, P=0.001) were more likely to be willing to practice exclusive breastfeeding. Conclusion: This study identifies the key predictors of willingness to practice exclusive breastfeeding. Despite the awareness being created by WHO, UNICEF and other organizations on the benefits of exclusive breastfeeding, statistics are still indicative of inadequate knowledge, negative attitude, low workplace support among mothers during their period of exclusive breastfeeding.