Karen & Gayle 2009

Introduction “ Breastfeeding is increasingly recognized as a health policy priority. To achieve real change in breastfeeding rates, those who advise and support childbearing women need to be appropriately educated and trained so that they do not disrupt breastfeeding” Smale, Renfrew, Marshall, Spilby, 2006, p. 103

Purpose and Goals Promote breastfeeding as the societal norm Promote the development of BF knowledge and practice in Health Unit (A) Explore the potential for an accessible online praxis experience (practical and applied knowledge) Explore the implementation of a collaborative online learning community

What is a learning community?

Value is attributed to the contributions of members with diverse areas of expertise Members benefit from exposure to multiple perspectives Support for individual development is offered by all members of the community The objective of advancing the collective knowledge base is shared Collective effort is applied to problem solving (Honey, Gunn, North, 2004)

PHN Survey of Public Health Unit (A) PHN survey – 8 returned Need for quick, reliable, culturally sensitive, and evidence based breastfeeding information

Literature Review A technological learning environment can support multiple ways of knowing Case Studies Learning is a social activity Online learning supports busy adults with differing priorities Cultivates collaborative practice and reflection De-centers the traditional model (of having one leader), by building engagement within the community

Implementation Invite the Health Unit (A) breastfeeding team to collaborate on the implementation of an onsite pilot If successful, implement on a larger scale

Evaluation Participant questionnaire to assess the effectiveness of the online learning site Reflections from the project working group on the process

Online learning site and discussion

All images from Google Images Thank you All images from Google Images