Breastfeeding Guidelines and the Baby Friendly Standards

By Meida van Baal, doula and maternity nurse

Breastfeeding Protocol and Guidelines:

I support mothers, who are interested in breastfeeding their babies, by following the ten guidelines developed by WHO and Unicef:

• Have a written breastfeeding policy.
• Train regularly in skills necessary to implement this policy.
• Inform all pregnant women about the benefits and management of breastfeeding.
• Help mothers initiate breastfeeding within one half-hour of birth.
• Show mothers how to breastfeed and maintain lactation, even if they should be separated from their infants.
• Give newborn infants no drink or food other than breastmilk, unless medically indicated.
• Practice rooming-in, that is allowing mothers and infants to remain together 24 hours a day.
• Encourage breastfeeding on demand.
• Give no artificial teats/nipples or pacifiers/dummies to breastfeeding infants.
• Recommend breastfeeding support groups.

In October 2018-February 2019, I have been trained to work with the Baby Friendly Standards for the Netherlands.

1. Policies, schooling, prenatal information and support system: build a firm foundation through policies and guidelines to support and educate pregnant women to recognize the importance of breastfeeding and early relationships for the health and wellbeing of their baby.
2. Good start: support all mothers and babies to initiate a close relationship and feeding soon after birth, so mothers can get breastfeeding off to a good start. Promoting skin-to-skin after the birth and latching the baby before 1 1/2 hours after birth.
3. Information and actual feeding: provide information on how to feed your baby, feeding on demand, rooming-in, latching your baby, expressing your milk, maintaining breastfeeding when separated from your baby and offer advice to parents who want to bottle feed their baby.
4. Supplementing and feeding other than breastfeeding: support mothers to supplement a baby, when there is a medical indication, and to make informed decisions regarding the introduction of food or fluids other than breastmilk when the baby is older.
5. Support parents to have a close and loving relationship with their baby.

https://www.babyfriendlynederland.nl/vijf-standaarden

https://www.unicef.org.uk/babyfriendly/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2014/02/Guide-to-the-Unicef-UK-Baby-Friendly-Initiative-Standards.pdf

In het Nederlands:

Standaard 1: beleid, scholing, prenatale voorlichting en ketenzorg.

Standaard 2: goede start door huid-op-huid contact direct na de geboorte. Dit huidcontact duurt minstens een uur.

Standaard 3: informatie en praktijk van het voeden: het geven van informatie over voeding op verzoek en over het dichtbij houden van de baby. Ik leer ouders hoe zij de baby kunnen aanleggen of de melk kunnen afkolven, zodat de borstvoeding kan worden voortgezet als moeder en baby gescheiden zijn. Wanneer ouders kiezen voor het voeden met de fles, leer ik de ouders hoe zij dat het beste kunnen doen.

Standaard 4: bijvoeding op medische indicatie, en voeding voor het oudere kind.

Standaard 5: hechting en zeggenschap.

Sat, 26 October