Baby-Friendly: snappy slogan or standard of care?
Breastfeeding offers significant protection against illness for the infant and numerous health benefits for the mother, including a decreased risk of breast cancer. In 1991, UNICEF and WHO launched the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative with the aim of increasing rates of breastfeeding. "Baby-Friendly" is a designation a maternity site can receive by demonstrating to external assessors compliance with the Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding. The Ten Steps are a series of best practice standards describing a pattern of care where commonly found practices harmful to breastfeeding are replaced with evidence based practices proven to increase breastfeeding outcome. Currently, approximately 19,250 hospitals worldwide have achieved Baby-Friendly status, less than 500 of which are found in industrialised nations. The Baby-Friendly initiative has increased breastfeeding rates, reduced complications, and improved mothers' health care experiences.
Boston University School of Medicine, The Breastfeeding Center, Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA. bobbi.philipp@bmc.org
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D001942:Breast Feeding / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000592:standards; D006761:Hospitals / Q000592:standards; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007391:International Cooperation; D008427:Maternal Health Services / Q000592:standards; D009775:Obstetrics and Gynecology Department, Hospital / Q000592:standards*; D016134:Organizational Policy; D011787:Quality of Health Care / Q000592:standards*