Women & Infants receives ‘Baby-Friendly’ designation

WOMEN & INFANTS HOSPITAL has been named a
WOMEN & INFANTS HOSPITAL has been named a "Baby-Friendly" hospital for its promotion of breastfeeding. From left to right, Dr. Maureen G. Phipps, chief of obstetrics and gynecology, Women & Infants Hospital; Angelleen Peters-Lewis, senior vice president of patient care services and chief nursing officer, Women & Infants Hospital; Ana Novais, executive director, R.I. Department of Health; Cynthia Zembo, lactation consultant, Women & Infants Hospital; Mark Marcantano, president and chief operating officer, Women & Infants Hospital; and Dr. Marcia VanVleet, director of newborn nursery, Women & Infants Hospital. / COURTESY WOMEN & INFANTS

PROVIDENCE – Women & Infants Hospital has been designated a “Baby-Friendly” birth facility for its promotion of breastfeeding, making it the second-largest hospital in the country to receive the designation.

Rhode Island now is No. 1 in the nation in the percentage of babies born at Baby-Friendly hospitals, according to a news release from Women & Infants, which said the designation comes during World Breastfeeding Week. The hospital has approximately 8,400 deliveries a year.

Baby-Friendly USA Inc. is the U.S. authority for the implementation of the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative, a global program sponsored by the World Health Organization and the United Nations Children’s Fund.
The initiative encourages and recognizes hospitals and birthing centers that offer an optimal level of care for breastfeeding mothers and promote the best, evidence-based feeding practices for all babies, the release said.

“Women & Infants Hospital has long been a recognized leader in the care of women and newborns,” Mark Marcantano, president and chief operating officer of Women & Infants, said in a statement. “This designation is a tribute to our commitment to ensuring that every woman who delivers a baby at Women & Infants Hospital is offered the resources, information and support needed to help her and her baby get the best, healthiest start in life.”

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Dr. Nicole Alexander-Scott, director of the state Department of Health said, “According to the World Health Organization’s Global Strategy on Infant and Young Child Feeding, breastfeeding is an unequalled way of providing ideal food for healthy growth and development of infants, though its benefits extend beyond those commonly associated with infant and young child health. Successful breastfeeding has positive implications on maternal health, the environment, the work force and society as a whole.”

Three years ago, Women & Infants was selected to participate in Best Fed Beginnings, a national effort to significantly improve breastfeeding rates in states where rates were the lowest.

Best Fed Beginnings sought to dramatically increase the number of U.S. hospitals implementing a proven model for maternity services that better supports a new mother’s choice to breastfeed.

“We recognize that for women who plan to breastfeed, the hospital experience strongly influences a mother’s ability to start and continue breastfeeding. We are committed to implementing evidence-based care through the Baby-Friendly designation to ensure that mothers delivering in our facility who intend to breastfeed, as well as those who cannot or choose not to breastfeed, are fully supported,” Angelleen Peters-Lewis, senior vice president of patient care services and chief nursing officer, Women & Infants, said. “This designation as a Baby-Friendly hospital is the culmination of a lot of hard work and determination across our organization, all with a goal of helping families get off to the right start.”
To encourage breastfeeding, Women & Infants allows new mothers to room-in with their newborns, promotes skin-to-skin contact, and does not distribute formula or artificial nipples (including pacifiers).

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