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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Natalia V. Vartapetova, MD, PhD, John Snow, Inc., Maliy Kiselniy Pereulok, 1/9, office #301, Moscow, 103031, Russia, + 7 095-921-6779, nvart@sovintel.ru and Patricia H. David, PhD, Senior Evaluation Advisor, John Snow, Inc, 44 Farnsworth St, Boston, MA 02210.
The new global strategy for infant and young child feeding stresses the importance of breastfeeding support within the health system. In the frame of USAID Women’ and Infants’ Health (WIN) Project breastfeeding related practices were assessed at five maternity hospitals in three Russian cities. During the initial facility-based survey more then 200 providers and 300 postpartum women were interviewed. 85% of postpartum women reported that they were currently breastfeeding, but nearly 70% of these women said their baby was given something else besides breast milk to drink during their hospital stay. More then half of all postpartum women were advised to supplement with water. Nearly two-thirds of women reported feeding on a fixed schedule. Only 28% of breastfeeding women said they fed on demand. Nearly 40% of all women reported that they first breastfed their baby within an hour of delivery and only 38% said that they stayed with a baby day and night. After a year of intervention consisted of integrated clinical and counseling training courses supported by a strong follow-up, institutionalized breastfeeding policy and step-by-step protocols and monitoring system four out of five maternities made necessary changes in practices. To assess changes the hospitals went through WHO/UNICEF Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) expertise that required at least 80% of compliance with the Global Criteria (early initiation, feeding on demand, exclusivity and rooming-in; skills and knowledge of the personnel and mothers). BFHI award confirmed that maternities met internationally agreed standards for maternity care that protects, promotes and supports breastfeeding.
Learning Objectives: Participants will
Keywords: Breastfeeding, Health Care
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.