Standards of Care for the Non-Breastfeeding Mother and her Baby
All personal within the service must ensure that their knowledge about artificial feeding is current. This is to ensure that all mothers are provided with clear, accurate and impartial information so that they can make an informed decision on how to feed their babies.
The service has a written artificial feeding policy for the feeding of a breastmilk substitute. This policy is routinely communicated to all providers who have contact with pregnant women, and/or mothers and babies.This policy must include:
| s | Information for health workers and family/whanau regarding risks associated with the use of infant formula |
| s | The risks of formula feeding |
| s | The benefits of skin-to-skin contact |
| s | Safe preparation of infant formula |
| s | Safe handling and feeding of formula and sterilisation of equipment |
| s | Cue-based feeding with guidelines for appropriate intake |
| s | Rooming-in 24 hrs a day and safe sleeping |
| s | Referral to parenting / well child services |
| s | A minimum 3 yearly review date |
This policy must be self audited annually.
The policy must be reviewed at least every three years.
Health Practitioner/Worker Education:
An education programme must be available showing the curriculum which will ensure that these providers, have completed the standards, as described in the BFCI Documents for Aotearoa New Zealand, and will receive further updates, as required, to ensure competency is maintained.
This education will include:
| s | the risks associated with feeding a baby infant formula |
| s | the importance of skin-to-skin contact |
| s | the importance of rooming-in 24 hours a day |
| s | cue based feeding with guidelines for appropriate intake |
| safe preparation and use of infant formula |
A copy of the course outline for training on the support of non-breastfeeding mothers should be available for review.
Antenatal Education:
A written description of the minimal content of the antenatal education provided to the woman who is unable to breastfeed/has decided to feed her baby infant formula is available.
This education will include:
| s | the risks associated with feeding a baby infant formula |
| s | the importance of skin-to-skin contact |
| s | the importance of rooming-in 24 hours a day |
| s | cue based feeding with guidelines for appropriate intake |
| s | safe preparation and use of infant formula |
| s | peer and parent support group contacts on discharge |
All information given to these mothers must be free from advertising and comply with the Code.
All education/information offered to pregnant women, who have a medical indication for which breastfeeding is not recommended, will be available to the assessment team. This material, for use in the antenatal period, must include the benefits of breastfeeding, the risks and costs of using artificial baby milks, comply with the Code and cover the criteria stipulated in the BFCI Documents for Aotearoa New Zealand.
Care of the Non-breastfeeding mother and her baby:
Documentation of the care for the non-breastfeeding mother and her baby will be available for review by the assessors at the time of audit.
A review of documentation indicates that printed information is discussed and distributed to mothers on an individual basis as set down in the criteria of the BFCI Documents for Aotearoa New Zealand.
All information offered to these women will be available.
Assessors will interview non-breastfeeding and partially breastfeeding mothers.
To pass the BFCI standards of care for the non-breastfeeding mother and her baby the Health Service must show compliance of all applicable questions relating to the above criteria.
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Artificial Feeding Policy |
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