Category Archives: Tracy Gregg

Posts related to Tracy Gregg’s practicum.

Application Submitted

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Well I have submitted the first phase of our application process for the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative which included a letter of support from our CEO, the Discovery Phase application, the self-appraisal tool, the facility data sheet and the funds ($2,200) to cover the costs associated with this certification.  This process took longer than anticipated due to key staff members being on vacation and therefore I was unable to obtain the information until their return.  We also had to review the current policies and procedures that are in place at the Maniilaq Health Center to correctly answer the questions for the application. 

This was a very eye opening process because it showed the staff at the Health Center how their current policies and procedures may be negatively impacting women to have a successful breastfeeding experience.  I am very excited to start working on the second phase of the application, the Development Phase.  I have already begun to work on one requirement of this phase, which is developing a Baby-Friendly Committee or Task Force.  I have recruited people from the Health Center and the community to be a part of this.  The other activates that I will be working on for this phase are:

1.      Develop a Baby-Friendly Action Plan based on the review of maternity care practices that effect infant feeding outcomes

2.      Develop a comprehensive infant feeding policy that addresses all Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding and review other related policies to assure they support the infant feeding policy.

3.      Develop a staff training curriculum and /or training plan to teach the knowledge and practical skills necessary to implement the policy

4.      Develop prenatal and postpartum teaching plans that support and enhance the infant feeding policy

5.      Develop plans for implementing breastfeeding support that includes linkages to breastfeeding resources that exist within the community

6.     Develop appropriate data collection plans

I have a lot of work ahead of me but I have enjoyed working with the staff at the Health Center.  They all are very excited about this project and are willing to provide their assistance when needed.  I also found out that two other hospitals in Alaska are currently going trough this same process.  They will be a great resource to have as we work towards the Development Phase. 

Update-BFHI

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I just received the first phase of our application today from Baby Friendly USA.  It looks like we have a lot of work ahead of us but the end results will be well worth it.  I will be meeting with the Director of Nursing and the In-patient Manager next week to start completing the Self-Appraisal tool.  In addition to the Self-Appraisal tool, I will need to obtain a letter of support from our CEO and complete the pathway application.  Then we can move on to the next phase; the Development phase.

Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative

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For my summer practicum I will be working towards the Baby-Friendly certification for the Maniilaq Health Center.  The Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) is a global program sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to encourage and recognize hospitals and birthing centers that offer an optimal level of care for infant feeding. The BFHI assists hospitals in giving mothers the information, confidence, and skills needed to successfully initiate and continue breastfeeding their babies or feeding formula safely, and gives special recognition to hospitals that have done so.

To achieve the Baby-Friendly Designation, facilities must register with Baby-Friendly USA; complete all the requirements; and ultimately demonstrate during an on-site assessment that we have correctly integrated all of the “ten steps to successful breastfeeding’ into our practice for healthy newborns. 

There are four phases to this process. 

1. Discovery Phase: Facilities register with Baby-Friendly USA and learn about the process.

2. Development Phase: Facilities make a commitment to the process, receive a registry of intent certificate, and receive a comprehensive set of plans for how they will implement the Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding. Extensive technical assistance from Baby-Friendly USA is provided. All plans are reviewed and approved by Baby-Friendly USA before the facility moves to the next phase.

3. Dissemination Phase: Facilities implement the plans they developed during the prior phase.  

4. Designation Phase: Facilities review their implementation of the Ten Steps and implement a quality assurance program. When ready, they undergo an on-site assessment conducted by a Baby-Friendly assessment team and a review by the External Review Board. Upon successful completion of this process, the Baby-Friendly designation is conferred. If the facility does not pass on first assessment, it may apply for re-assessment when identified problems have been rectified.  

Participation in this initiative provides several possible benefits for the facility:

  • Quality Improvment:  many of the ten steps are easily adaptable as QI projects.
  • Cost containment:  increased breastfeeding rates can have impact on many health care costs from postpartum hemmorrhage, to decreased incidence of ear infection.
  • Public relations/marketing:  families who feel adequately supported during the vulnerable postpartum days can speak powerfully for a birth facility
  • Prestige:  the receipt of this international award is an achievement to celebrate.

Obviously this is a very lengthy process and I won’t be able to complete all four phases this summer, but I am hopeful that we will be able to make tremendous progress towards this goal.  I will be working closely with the hospital administrator during this process.  I have already learned quite a bit about trying to implement a new program within an organization; there are many channels it must go through before the final stamp of approval is given.