THE EFFECT OF VIRTUAL EDUCATION ON THE KNOWLEDGE OF POSTPARTUM MOTHERS ABOUT BREASTFEEDING DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC: QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN

Introduction: Postpartum mothers and newborns are a group that is vulnerable to COVID-19. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, access to essential services such as breastfeeding counseling in hospitals, health clinics, and home visits has been disrupted. Postpartum mothers will immediately breastfeed. Therefore there is a need for knowledge, appropriate information, and support to provide breast milk, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aims to analyze the effect of virtual counseling on the knowledge of postpartum mothers during the COVID-19 pandemic at the Delima Midwife Clinic in Jambi City. Materials and Methods: The current study utilized a quasi-experimental design with one group design pretest-posttest approach. This research was conducted in January-October 2021 and involved 75 postpartum mothers. This study using the zoom app. and questionnaire. Data analysis using Wilcoxon statistical test. Results: The results showed an increase in knowledge where before being given virtual education, most of the respondents' knowledge was in the Poor category, as much as 80% (mean 6.18). After the intervention, the knowledge of most respondents in the Good category was 46.7% (mean 12.15) with P-value <0.05. Conclusion: The study concludes that virtual counseling significantly affects the knowledge of postpartum mothers about breastfeeding during the COVID-19 pandemic.