Brochure

Appendix F5: Study Brochure

Abt Associates Inc.

Study Brochure

What would I be asked to do?
If you decide to take part in the study,
someone from our research team will call
you while you’re pregnant. We’ll ask you to
answer some questions about yourself and
your thoughts about breastfeeding. This
phone call will last about 15-20 minutes.
Afterwards, we will send you a money order
for $20.
We’ll also give you a toll-free number and
ask you to call and let us know when your
baby is born. If you call within 2 weeks of
your baby’s birth, we’ll send you a $5
giftcard to a store near you like Target or
Wal-Mart.
About 2-3 months after you have your baby,
we’ll call you again to ask about your
experiences with your peer counselor and
about how you are feeding your baby. This
phone call will last about 15 minutes.
Afterwards, we’ll send you another $20 in
the mail.

How is my privacy protected?
We keep your personal information private.
We do not use your name in any report,
and we do not tell anyone information that
is directly about you. Instead, we combine
information from all women in the study

together in summary form and for statistical
purposes.

Who is doing the study?
We are researchers at a company called Abt
Associates Inc. Along with our partners at
Abt SRBI, we are doing this study on behalf
of the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) at
the U.S. Department of Agriculture. We are
a global leader in research studies like this
one. We have over 40 years of experience
working with women, infants, children, and
health care providers. We are dedicated to
doing research that helps improve the lives
of people in communities throughout the
U.S. and the world. To learn more about us,
visit our website:
www.abtassociates.com

WIC Peer Counseling Study

For more information, contact the Study
Director at:
http://www.nwgapublichealth.org/programs/wic/index.htm

[study email]
[study toll-free]

Your local WIC office is taking
part in a national study of WIC’s
Peer Counseling Program.
This study is taking place in your local
WIC office and in several other WIC
offices across the country. About 1,800
women are being invited to volunteer
for the study.

learn about breastfeeding. They are
not doctors or nurses – they are
mothers who breastfed their own
children. WIC offices hire these women
and give them special training to help
other women learn about breastfeeding.

Do I have to be in the study to get
peer counseling about
breastfeeding?
No. Participation is voluntary. You can
talk to a WIC peer counselor whether or
not you decide to be in the study. If you
decide not to be in the study, you will
also still get all of the WIC benefits you
are eligible to receive.

Are you . . .
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How does the study work?

18 years of age or older?
Pregnant with your first child?
Certified to receive WIC benefits?
Interested in peer counseling about
breastfeeding?

You might be interested in this study.

What is this study about?
The purpose of the study is to find out
how well different peer counseling
programs can help new mothers
breastfeed their babies. When a
pregnant woman or new mother gets
WIC benefits, she may want to talk to a
peer counselor about breastfeeding and
how she will feed her baby.
Peer Counselors are ordinary women from
your community who help other women

There are different ways that Peer
Counselors can do their jobs. In some
WIC offices, peer counselors mainly talk
to women by phone. In other places,
peer counselors may visit new mothers
in the hospital. This study will help WIC
agencies know if one way that Peer
Counselors do their jobs is better than
other ways to help women who want to
breastfeed.

If you participate in the study we will
choose at random which of 2 peer
counseling programs you will receive.
(Choosing at random is like flipping a
coin.) In Program A your peer counselor
will contact you when you’re in the
hospital after you deliver your baby. She
will meet with you in-person within the
first week after you give birth. In
Program B, your peer counselor will not
contact you in the hospital, but you can
call her if you want to. She will contact
you within the first month after you give
birth, or you can call her anytime you
want to. Until we finish the study, we
will not know if one program is better
than the other for helping new mother
breastfeed, or if the two programs are
equally good at helping new mothers.