Question

Initial Discussion Post:

The Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) was launched in 1991 by UNICEF and the World Health Organization to ensure that all health care organizations providing maternity services become centers of breast feeding support. A maternity facility can be designated “baby friendly” when it has implemented the specified ten steps to successful breast feeding.

After reviewing the information in the article,

Cardaci, R. (2017). Beyond Maternity Nursing: The Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative. American Journal Of Nursing, 117(8), 36-45. doi: 10.1097/01.NAJ.0000521947.45448.d9

Respond to the following:

Describe the potential social, economic, and cultural implications associated with the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative.

Describe how the registered nurse can overcome the obstacles to make the Baby-Friendly Initiative a success.

Answer 1

Introduction: The Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) was launched in 1991 by UNICEF and the World Health Organization to promote breast feeding in hospitals andbirthing facilities worldwide.

Ten steps to successful breast feeding:

1. A written breastfeeding policy should be made available which can be communicated to health care staffs regularly.
2. Educate the health care staffs the ways to implement the policy.
3. Give information to all pregnant women about the benefits of breastfeeding.
4. Assist new mothers to initiate breastfeeding within the one and half hour of birth.
5. Help mothers how to breastfeed and maintain lactation, even if they need to be separated from thier infants.
6. Give exclusive breastfeeding to newborn babies, unless it is medically suggested.
7. Practice mother and baby to be together for 24 hrs a day-rooming in can be initiated.
8. Encourage to provide breastfeeding on demand.
9. Donot give artificial pacifiers.
10. Establish relationship with breastfeeding support groups and refer mothers to them so that mothers can dependon them incase of discharge from hospitals or clinics.

Describe the potential social, economic, and cultural implications associated with the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative.

Of the 10 successful steps of breast feeding, point 3(prenatal education) and point 10(post natal breast feeding support) were difficult to implement but had effective impacts in maternal breastfeeeding discussions.

Reseach was conducted in 19 countries across 4 continents.It was found that following the BFHI standards had positive impact on breastfeeding outcomes like initiating of early breastfeeding, exclusive breast feeding. Following 10 steps of BFHI caused a decrease in the incidence of gastrointestinal infections and atopic eczema at the age of 1 yr. Also breast fed children had high IQ and academic performance

Describe how the registered nurse can overcome the obstacles to make the Baby-Friendly Initiative a success.

Medical Challenges: Making sure that all obstetricians and pediatricians are aware that the policy are difficult and time is limited to educate mothers. Hence take up the initiative in a haste.

Baby friendly Champions: Select the nurses who are champions in bringing about effective measures in implementing breast feeding.Maintain good relation with mothers. Then only the mothers will accept the education and assistance provided.

Acceptance by mothers: Many women will not accept the education.They will decide whether the breast feeding programme should be considered or not.So making thier mind positive towards breast feeding is a difficult task.

Many mothers do not wish to start breastfeeding at the initial time of birth because of some cultural interferences.

Providing formula food for baby at birth should be discouraged unless medically indicated. Many mothers think that breast feeding will make them out of shape. But that is not true, breast feeding will make the mother as well as the child healthy.

Conclusion: Hence more effective education and support to mothers will help in the Baby Friendly Health Initiative.