I decided that for Throwback Thursday I was going to look in old issues of Mothering magazine for interesting tidbits. Imagine my surprise when I saw an article from the Winter 1994 edition of Mothering magazine that was written about "Baby Friendly Hospitals." Right there in print was the list of Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding that had been part of the launch of the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative, a joint project of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).
At the time the article was written the author, Judy Mieger, stated that 800 hospitals and four birth centers outside of the United States had made the commitment to the Ten Steps. According to the Baby-Friendly website, 20,000 facilities now exist worldwide. How many have committed in the United States? The Baby-Friendly USA website states a mere 222 (!!!). In the entire United States! In the State of Texas?....A whopping seven. Not one in the City of San Antonio. We wonder why our breastfeeding rates are so low.
Looking at the Ten Steps, I wonder which ones are the biggest challenge for birth facilities. I can tell you that locally our hospitals are not following #9, nor #8 (because everyone has their opinion on how often you should nurse) and #7 is practiced, but only after baby is often taken away for a bath and transitioning.....which is so not necessary. Babies transition better on their mama. Baths wash away all the amazing goodness babies are born with. I believe that most facilities are following the remainder of the steps. Maybe we as consumers need to push our local facilities to complete the process and follow all 10. I hope it doesn't take us another 20 years!!
At the time the article was written the author, Judy Mieger, stated that 800 hospitals and four birth centers outside of the United States had made the commitment to the Ten Steps. According to the Baby-Friendly website, 20,000 facilities now exist worldwide. How many have committed in the United States? The Baby-Friendly USA website states a mere 222 (!!!). In the entire United States! In the State of Texas?....A whopping seven. Not one in the City of San Antonio. We wonder why our breastfeeding rates are so low.
Looking at the Ten Steps, I wonder which ones are the biggest challenge for birth facilities. I can tell you that locally our hospitals are not following #9, nor #8 (because everyone has their opinion on how often you should nurse) and #7 is practiced, but only after baby is often taken away for a bath and transitioning.....which is so not necessary. Babies transition better on their mama. Baths wash away all the amazing goodness babies are born with. I believe that most facilities are following the remainder of the steps. Maybe we as consumers need to push our local facilities to complete the process and follow all 10. I hope it doesn't take us another 20 years!!
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