What SHOULD Happen With Rooming-In
Step 7 of the Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding calls for facilities to “enable mothers and their infants to remain together and to practice rooming-in 24 hours a day.” Regardless of whether a mother isRead more
What SHOULD Happen When a Mother Who Planned to Breastfeed Asks for Formula
“The best laid plans…” Things don’t always go as planned for moms who enter the hospital with a goal of breastfeeding their infant. Sometimes the mom and baby initially struggle with breastfeeding. Some popular socialRead more
UNC Hospitals – Chapel Hill First to Be Successfully Assessed on New Step 2 Competencies
When Debbie Gordon, MSN, RN, IBCLC, joined the UNC Hospitals in Chapel Hill as Manager of Lactation Services in September 2021, her primary mandate was to lead the UNC team through a successful Baby-Friendly redesignationRead more
Authors of Three-Paper Series in The Lancet Call for End to Exploitative Marketing of Formula
BFUSA would like to draw your attention to the excellent presentations and panel discussion which supported the launch of a three-paper series in The Lancet, in which the authors collectively argue that breastfeeding is aRead more
What Does It Take to Sustain Baby-Friendly Designation for 25+ Years?
“The 10 Steps were a way to standardize our practice across the unit and across the hospital, because there was basically nothing back then. We were really building it from scratch.” Sharon Baker, RNRead more
Addressing Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Breastfeeding Through Community and Hospital-Based Approaches
Baby-Friendly USA encourages you to watch this informative "Breastfeeding Grand Rounds" webcast sponsored by the University at Albany School of Public Health, in partnership with the New York State Department of Health's WIC program. TheRead more
Entire NYC Health + Hospitals System Is Baby-Friendly After Kings County Designation
The key members of the Baby-Friendly team at NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County in Brooklyn, NY, remember with fondness the moment they heard the news that their facility had finally achieved Baby-Friendly designation in AugustRead more
Cape Cod Hospital Perseveres to Achieve Baby-Friendly Designation
“We were 10 days from our assessment date when COVID shut everything down.” That’s how Heather Lakatos, one of Cape Cod Hospital’s Lactation Consultants remembers the first of several unexpected hurdles she and the teamRead more
BFUSA Welcomes Brianna Clark as New Board Member
As a primary care physician in a rural environment, Brianna Clark, DO, MPH, CNPM, CLC, the newest member of BFUSA’s Board of Directors, encounters the full spectrum of care in her practice. “I cover ERRead more
A Life and Career Enhanced by Baby-Friendly
Natashia Conner Goes from Mom to Mother Partner to IBCLC to Health Equity Advocate We met Dr. Natashia Conner where so many people meet these days – on Facebook. In a moment of reflection duringRead more
A Total Commitment to Breastfeeding at Petaluma Valley Hospital
“I would say there’s a total commitment from the team on the unit for breastfeeding. They all have a passion for breastfeeding.” That’s how Wendi Thomas, RN, MSN, Director of Nursing at Petaluma Valley Hospital,Read more
BFUSA Welcomes Casey Bland as New Board Member
Baby-Friendly USA is pleased to welcome Casey Bland, RN, MSN, as the newest member of its Board of Directors. Casey is currently serving as the Provider Quality Coordinator for Blue Cross Blue Shield of MississippiRead more
Baby-Friendly on the Local News
We at BFUSA are so impressed with the facilities that have remained steadfast in their commitment to the Baby-Friendly designation pathway during the challenges that have come with the pandemic. These facilities have been remarkably flexibleRead more
New Study Finds Breastfeeding Linked to Reduced Odds of Infant Deaths in the US
BFUSA would like to bring to your attention a study recently published in Lancet by Li et al., which adds to the substantial and ever-growing evidence of the benefits of breastfeeding. While there is substantial evidenceRead more
BFUSA Awards First Designations Via Virtual Assessment Process
“It was challenging, in a good way,” says Vanessa Dacey, BFUSA’s Accreditation Director. She’s speaking about the need to revamp many of BFUSA’s policies and systems when it became clear that assessors would not be ableRead more
BFUSA Releases Toolkit to Bring Baby-Friendly Principles to the NICU
BFUSA is pleased to announce that we have released an important set of resources to help providers apply Baby-Friendly principles in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). The BFUSA NICU Toolkit is designed to help NICUsRead more
BFUSA Releases Updated BFHI Guidelines and Evaluation Criteria
Baby-Friendly USA is excited to announce the release of the updated Guidelines and Evaluation Criteria (GEC) 6th edition, for the United States, which will apply to all Baby-Friendly designation assessment letters received on or after JuneRead more
Celebrating 40 Years of the Code
Forty years ago today, on May 21, 1981, the World Health Assembly (WHA) adopted the International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes (the Code). Recognizing the extent to which the promotion of breastmilk substitutes was adverselyRead more
Baby-Friendly in the Pandemic: Ingenuity, Flexibility, and Doing Whatever It Takes
Over the past year, BFUSA has engaged in a series of support calls with Baby-Friendly designated facilities to learn about how things have been going at the front line of care during the pandemic. We haveRead more
Update from BFUSA: Virtual Assessments
Dear Colleagues, The COVID-19 pandemic has compelled all organizations and businesses to make changes, some small, some very large. At BFUSA, we have been forced to make significant changes to our core activity, hospital assessments, byRead more
Hello from Eileen FitzPatrick, BFUSA’s New CEO
Dear Colleagues, Happy New Year! I have spent my first month transitioning into the CEO position at BFUSA. I thought this was a good time to reach out to say hello to all of you. IRead more
BFUSA Welcomes Eileen FitzPatrick as New CEO
Dear Colleagues, I am very excited to inform you that, after an extensive and thorough search process, the Baby-Friendly USA Board of Directors has chosen Eileen FitzPatrick, DrPH, MPH, RDN, to be the new CEO ofRead more
Update from BFUSA
Dear Colleagues, BFUSA would once again like to express our heartfelt appreciation to the thousands of dedicated healthcare workers caring for patients throughout the US during this difficult time. Thank you for all your hard workRead more
Important Information – Just in Time for World Breastfeeding Week
Welcome to World Breastfeeding Week! World Breastfeeding Week is celebrated every year from August 1 - 7 to commemorate the Innocenti Declaration. This milestone document was signed in August 1990 by government policymakers, WHO, UNICEF and otherRead more
Update on BFUSA Search for New CEO
Dear Colleagues, As we announced in May, Baby-Friendly USA CEO Trish MacEnroe will be retiring at the end of this calendar year. The BFUSA Board is conducting a national search to find her successor by thisRead more
