Oxford is Baby-friendly

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Wednesday, 18 June 2014 15:24

Janette Bowie, Colleen Wilson, Anna Marie Smith, Kim Ross, Dr. Douglas Neal, Janice Magill, Ronda Manning and Lesley Leach mark Oxford County Public Health's Baby-Friendly Initiative designation (Mike McCulloch/Heart FM)

Oxford County's public health department is now designated as baby-friendly by the Breastfeeding Committee for Canada.

WOODSTOCK – Oxford County's public health department has received Baby-Friendly Initiative designation by the Breastfeeding Committee for Canada.

"It basically says that our policies, practices and services that we offer young families will promote, protect and support breastfeeding, but we will offer the same level of care to every woman regardless of her feeding decision," said Janice Magill, a public health nurse and lactation consultant who helped lead the initiative to secure the designation.

Magill said breastfeeding has many health benefits for babies, "human milk is designed for the unique growth of the human infant. It is higher in carbohydrates which feeds the initial rapid brain growth that occurs in the human infant."

"It is very high in immune-boosting properties. We say that the initial feedings of colostrum that baby gets [are] like immunizing them without giving them a needle," Magill said.

"It also has heath benefits for the mother," Magill said, including a reduction in risk for Type 2 Diabetes and breast and ovarian cancers. Breastfeeding can also reduce the risk of children falling ill with Type 1 and 2 Diabetes and some childhood cancers, Magill said.

The public health department has been working on achieving the designation on and off for the last ten years, Magill said.

Hospitals and public health units must meet the Breastfeeding Committee for Canada's ten steps practice indicators to get the designation and Oxford public health was assessed for three days in January.

According to the committee's website, those indicators are:

Have a written breastfeeding policy that is routinely communicated to all health care providers and volunteers
Ensure all health care providers have the knowledge and skills necessary to implement the breastfeeding policy
Inform pregnant women and their families about the importance and process of breastfeeding
Place babies in uninterrupted skin-to-skin contact with their mothers immediately following birth for at least an hour or until completion of the first feeding or as long as the mother wishes: Encourage mothers to recognize when their babies are ready to feed, offering help as needed
Assist mothers to breastfeed and maintain lactation should they face challenges including separation from their infants
Support mothers to exclusively breastfeed for the first six months, unless supplements are medically indicated
Facilitate 24-hour rooming-in for all mother-infant pairs
Encourage baby-led or cue-based breastfeeding and encourage sustained breastfeeding beyond six months with appropriate introduction of complementary foods
Support mothers to feed and care for their breastfeeding babies without the use of artificial teats or pacifiers
Provide a seamless transition between the services provided by the hospital, community health services and peer support programs

The Baby-Friendly Initiative was created by the World Health Organization and UNICEF in 1991.