2.0 The Baby Friendly Initiative
In 1989 the Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding were set out in the joint World Health Organization and UNICEF statement "Protecting, promoting and supporting breastfeeding: the special role of maternity services". Two years later world leaders met in Italy where the Innocenti Declaration was drafted and endorsed by the World Health Assembly, giving it world-wide status and acceptance.
There were 4 targets set:
- The third target stated that maternity facilities should practice the recently published Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding.
The Steps
The Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) was launched by WHO and UNICEF in June 1991 at a meeting of the International Pediatric Association. The goal is to promote the adoption of the Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding in hospitals worldwide. It is designed to remove hospital barriers to breastfeeding by creating a supportive environment with trained and knowledgeable health workers. Adherence to the WHO Code on the Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes is also a requirement of the Initiative.
The Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding
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To continue the best practices initiated in the hospital situation, and to provide supportive care to the mother in the community the Seven-point Plan for Sustaining Breastfeeding in the Community was launched in the United Kingdom in 1998 and subsequently modified and adopted by many other countries.
The Seven-point Plan to Promote, Protect and Support Breastfeeding in the Community*
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* Various countries have altered the wording of some of these points slightly.
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Integrated Ten Steps (Breastfeeding Committee for Canada)
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What should I remember?
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