Feeding and caring for your baby

Your rights as parents – “You choose, we support”

UNICEF’s Baby Friendly Initiative

We are extremely proud to have been awarded re-accreditation as a Baby Friendly Hospital by UNICEF Baby Friendly Initiative Accreditation in 2017. Details of our award can be found on the UNICEF website where you will find evidence based practical information about caring for your baby, breastfeeding and formula feeding.

 

This Trust supports the right of all parents to make informed choices about  feeding and caring for their baby. All Trust staff will support you in your decisions. We believe that breastfeeding is the healthiest way to feed your baby due to its unique ingredients. We recognise the important health and emotional benefits which breastfeeding provides for both you and your child. We therefore encourage you to breastfeed your baby. We know for a small number this is not possible due to certain medications or illness. If you are concerned please get in touch with your midwife who can provide you with evidence based information about medication and breastfeeding as we can help and support you.

Ways in Which We Will Help You to Feed Your Baby Successfully

We have a policy on infant feeding which has been adopted Trust wide.

We also have a Parents Guide.

More than 420 staff and neonatal unit nursing staff have been specially trained to help you to feed your baby responsively and enjoy a rewarding, positive feeding experience. There are more than 100 midwives, maternity care assistants and nurses with additional training who are Infant Feeding Keyworkers.

The infant feeding co-ordinators Jo Naylor and Gayle Macartney can be contacted on 01603 286058.

Leaflet and App

At your 16 week midwife appointment you will be offered this Essential Guide to Feeding and Caring for you Baby. It will provide you with information to help you enjoy a rewarding feeding experience.

Your midwife will discuss this with you. Make notes of what you would like to talk about.

The baby buddy app is a free one that has been endorsed by UNICEF and you can download it.

Breast feeding support volunteers

The hospital has a number of Breastfeeding Peer Supporters who volunteer across Maternity and Neonatal Unit. They act as a “well informed friend” or mentor to new mothers and are on hand to offer support, listen to any mother’s experiences and worries, and give advice on aspects of breast feeding and skin to skin contact.  For mothers who’s babies are on NICU (Neonatal Unit) they can support you with expressing too.

The volunteers have all undertaken training provided by The Breastfeeding Network (BfN) Charity, the National Childbirth Trust (NCT) or the Association of Breastfeeding Mothers (ABM).  They have also completed the Breastfeeding and Relationship Building course to UNICEF standards.

They attend supervision at least six times a year with the peer support co-ordinator Natasha Easter, as well as annual updates.

There are also many infant feeding  support groups locally and nationally that you can contact or attend.

Click here to take you to our infant feeding information leaflets.