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The Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) is a global program sponsored by the World Health Organization and the United Nations Children's Fund to help medical facilities offer an optimal level of care for lactation.

Steps for best practice in education on breast-feeding

August 1, 2009

Steps for best practice in education on breast-feeding

Implementation designates hospitals Baby-Friendly

The Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) is a global program sponsored by the World Health Organization and the United Nations Children's Fund to help medical facilities offer an optimal level of care for lactation. Baby-Friendly USA, a nonprofit organization in East Sandwich, MA, implements the BFHI in the United States.

This organization has created 10 steps to promote, protect, and support breast-feeding that health care facilities can follow to be designated a baby-friendly hospital.

The 10 Steps to Successful Breast-feeding:

1. Maintain a written breast-feeding policy that is routinely communicated to all health care staff.

2. Train all health care staff in skills necessary to implement this policy.

3. Inform all pregnant women about the benefits and management of breast-feeding.

4. Help mothers initiate breast-feeding within one hour of birth.

5. Show mothers how to breast-feed and how to maintain lactation, even if they are separated from their infants.

6. Give infants no food or drink other than breast milk, unless medically indicated.

7. Practice "rooming in" - allow mothers and infants to remain together 24 hours a day.

8. Encourage unrestricted breast-feeding.

9. Give no pacifiers or artificial nipples to breast-feeding infants.

10. Foster the establishment of breast-feeding support groups and refer mothers to them upon discharge from the hospital or clinic.

Baby-Friendly USA has a written report that provides details on how to implement the 10 steps. It can be downloaded at: http://www.babyfriendlyusa.org/eng/docs/BFUSAreport.pdf.

RESOURCE

For more information about the ten steps for successful breast-feeding, contact:

Baby-Friendly USA, 327 Quaker Meeting House Road, East Sandwich, MA 02537. Telephone: (508) 888-8092. E-mail: info@babyfriendlyusa.org. Web site: www.babyfriendlyusa.org.