Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative
Encyclopedia
World Health Organization
The World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health...
and UNICEF, launched in 1991 following the adoption of the Innocenti Declaration on breastfeeding promotion
Breastfeeding promotion
Breastfeeding promotion refers to coordinated activities and policies to promote health among women, newborns and infants through breastfeeding....
in 1990. The initiative is a global effort for improving the role of maternity services to enable mothers to breastfeed
Breastfeeding
Breastfeeding is the feeding of an infant or young child with breast milk directly from female human breasts rather than from a baby bottle or other container. Babies have a sucking reflex that enables them to suck and swallow milk. It is recommended that mothers breastfeed for six months or...
babies for the best start in life. It aims at improving the care of pregnant women, mothers and newborns at health facilities
Health care provider
A health care provider is an individual or an institution that provides preventive, curative, promotional or rehabilitative health care services in a systematic way to individuals, families or communities....
that provide maternity services for protecting, promoting and supporting breastfeeding, in accordance with the International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes
International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes
The International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes is an international health policy framework for breastfeeding promotion adopted by the World Health Assembly of the World Health Organization in 1981...
.
UNICEF, the World Health Organization and many national government health agencies recommend that babies are breastfed exclusively for their first six months of life. Studies have shown that breastfed babies are less likely to suffer from serious illnesses, including gastroenteritis
Gastroenteritis
Gastroenteritis is marked by severe inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract involving both the stomach and small intestine resulting in acute diarrhea and vomiting. It can be transferred by contact with contaminated food and water...
, asthma
Asthma
Asthma is the common chronic inflammatory disease of the airways characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and bronchospasm. Symptoms include wheezing, coughing, chest tightness, and shortness of breath...
, eczema
Eczema
Eczema is a form of dermatitis, or inflammation of the epidermis . In England, an estimated 5.7 million or about one in every nine people have been diagnosed with the disease by a clinician at some point in their lives.The term eczema is broadly applied to a range of persistent skin conditions...
, and respiratory and ear infections. Adults who were breastfed as babies are less likely to develop risk factors for heart disease
Heart disease
Heart disease, cardiac disease or cardiopathy is an umbrella term for a variety of diseases affecting the heart. , it is the leading cause of death in the United States, England, Canada and Wales, accounting for 25.4% of the total deaths in the United States.-Types:-Coronary heart disease:Coronary...
such as obesity
Obesity
Obesity is a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have an adverse effect on health, leading to reduced life expectancy and/or increased health problems...
and high blood pressure. There are benefits for mothers too: women who breastfeed have a lower risk of developing breast cancer
Breast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer originating from breast tissue, most commonly from the inner lining of milk ducts or the lobules that supply the ducts with milk. Cancers originating from ducts are known as ductal carcinomas; those originating from lobules are known as lobular carcinomas...
, ovarian cancer
Ovarian cancer
Ovarian cancer is a cancerous growth arising from the ovary. Symptoms are frequently very subtle early on and may include: bloating, pelvic pain, difficulty eating and frequent urination, and are easily confused with other illnesses....
and hip fractures in later life. The BFHI aims to increase the numbers of babies who are exclusively breastfed worldwide, a goal which the WHO estimates could contribute to avoiding over a million child deaths each year.
Criteria
The criteria for a hospital's Baby Friendly accreditation include:- Have a written breastfeeding policy that is routinely communicated to all health care staff.
- Train all health care staff in skills necessary to implement this policy.
- Inform all pregnant women about the benefits and management of breastfeeding.
- Help mothers initiate breastfeeding within one half-hour of birth.
- Show mothers how to breastfeed and maintain lactation, even if they should be separated from their infants.
- Give newborn infants no food or drink other than breastmilk, not even sips of water, unless medically indicated.
- Practice rooming in - that is, allow mothers and infants to remain together 24 hours a day.
- Encourage breastfeeding on demand.
- Give no artificial teats or pacifiers (also called dummies or soothers) to breastfeeding infants.
- Foster the establishment of breastfeeding support groups and refer mothers to them on discharge from the hospital or clinic.
The program also restricts use by the hospital of free formula
Infant formula
Infant formula is a manufactured food designed and marketed for feeding to babies and infants under 12 months of age, usually prepared for bottle-feeding or cup-feeding from powder or liquid . The U.S...
or other infant care aids provided by formula companies.
Since the program's inception, approximately 15,000 facilities in more than 152 countries have been inspected and accredited as "Baby-Friendly."
Canada
In Canada, the provinces of QuebecQuebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
and New Brunswick
New Brunswick
New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...
have mandated the implementation of the BFHI. Other provinces and territories are implementing strategies at regional and local levels. As of 2008, 18 health care facilities (9 hospitals & birthing centres and 9 community health services) had been designated “Baby-Friendly” across the country.
Cuba
In Cuba, 49 of the country's 56 hospitals and maternity facilities have been designated as "baby-friendly". In the six years following the initiation of the BFHI program, the rate of exclusive breastfeeding at four months almost tripled - from 25 per cent in 1990 to 72 per cent in 1996.Sweden
Sweden is considered the global leader in terms of BFHI implementation: four years after the programme was introduced in 1993, all of the then 65 maternity centres in the country had been designated “baby-friendly”.United Kingdom
The UNICEF UKUNICEF UK
UNICEF UK, also known as the United Kingdom Committee for UNICEF, is one of 36 UNICEF National Committees based in industrialised countries. The National Committees raise funds for the organisation's worldwide emergency and development work. In 2007, UNICEF UK raised £41.3 million for UNICEF’s work...
Baby Friendly Initiative was launched in the United Kingdom in 1994. The Initiative works with the National Health Service
National Health Service
The National Health Service is the shared name of three of the four publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom. They provide a comprehensive range of health services, the vast majority of which are free at the point of use to residents of the United Kingdom...
(NHS) to ensure a high standard of care for pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers and babies in hospital
Hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment by specialized staff and equipment. Hospitals often, but not always, provide for inpatient care or longer-term patient stays....
s and community health settings. The Baby Friendly Initiative accredits health-care facilities that adopt internationally recognised best practice standards for breastfeeding. During each stage of accreditation, the Initiative provides support as facilities implement standards relating to policies and procedures, staff education, effective auditing, educating pregnant women and mothers, and other relevant areas.
In 1998, its principles were extended to cover the work of community health-care services with the Seven Point Plan for the Promotion, Protection and Support of Breastfeeding in Community Health Care Settings. In 2005, it introduced an accreditation programme for university departments responsible for midwifery, health visitor and public health nurse education. This ensures that newly qualified midwives and health visitors are equipped with the basic knowledge and skills they need to support breastfeeding effectively. The program's emphasis on applying the standards in post-natal and education settings makes it unique amongst the various Baby Friendly programmes in other countries.
There are now 52 Baby Friendly-accredited maternity hospitals in the UK and ten accredited community health-care providers. It has been estimated that if all babies were breastfed, over £35m would be saved by the NHS in England and Wales each year in treating gastroenteritis alone. Despite this, breastfeeding rates in the UK are amongst the lowest in Europe: 78 per cent of babies born in the UK are breastfed at birth, falling to 63 per cent at one week. Only one in five babies still receives breastmilk at six months. In 2009, the Department of Health awarded a total of £4 million to 40 Primary Care Trust
NHS Primary Care Trust
An NHS primary care trust is a type of NHS trust, part of the National Health Service in England. PCTs commission primary, community and secondary care from providers. Until 31 may2011 they also provided community services directly. Collectively PCT are responsible for spending around 80% of the...
s in areas with low rates of breastfeeding to support them in seeking Baby Friendly accreditation.