Several steps closer to Baby Friendly

World Breastfeeding Week in Canada is October 1-7, 2014. The theme this year is “Breastfeeding for life: a winning goal” and many activities are planned in our communities of care.

The Inter-regional Baby-Friendly Initiative (BFI) Steering Committee continues to keep our eye on the goal of meeting the requirements for Baby-Friendly designation by 2015 in VCH/PHC according to the Integrated 10 Steps Practice Outcome Indicators for Hospitals and Community Health Units. This year, we are largely focused on Step 2 –breastfeeding education.  Have you noticed our screensavers on VCH computers? There are 8 beautiful pictures each included in the rotation for about 6 weeks, and each with a message explaining a key component of what it means to be Baby-Friendly. In addition to the screensavers, and the existing breastfeeding education modules for allied health providers on CCRS there are exciting new initiatives underway:

• A hot- off -the -press brief 5-minute audio/video module that describes what it means to be Baby Friendly and how we can support it, regardless of our role within the organization, is being released in time for World Breastfeeding Week and is now available for all staff on CCRS.
• We have partnered with UBC to develop educational storyboards for community family physicians and specialists who do not provide direct care to breastfeeding mothers and their infants. These modules are expected to be completed this fall and will provide Continuing Medical Education credits (CME) to physicians as part of the regular UBC professional education opportunities.
• We are working with Salus Global to include breastfeeding education in the national MoreOB program. The MoreOB program provides core educational requirements for hospital based nursing, midwifery and physician providers of labour and delivery care.
• We have translated “Breastfeeding in the First 3 Weeks” into the seven most common languages spoken in VCH along with new handouts on Newborn Jaundice and Nipple Pain into 4 common languages.

Supported by Perinatal Services BC (PSBC), Accreditation Canada and the Ministry of Health, the Baby Friendly Initiative is the standard for supporting breastfeeding in B.C. A recent gap analysis shows that there have been many positive changes in our hospitals and community health facilities since our last survey in 2010. We have strategies now in process to meet outstanding gaps in the prenatal period, to work with PSBC and HSSBC to provincially standardize the formula purchase contract, to improve breastfeeding duration rates, and to provide support for women who choose not to breastfeed.

Please don’t hesitate to contact Radhika Bhagat (Co-Chair of the BFI Steering Committee), Joanne Wooldridge, (Regional Leader, Early Childhood Development), or Patty Keith (Regional Director of Planning, Maternal Child Services, and BFI Steering Committee Co-Chair) if you have any questions or would like more information.