Four more public hospitals, namely the Bustamante Hospital For Children, Spanish Town Hospital, Noel Holmes Hospital, and Port Antonio Hospital have met the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) standards and are now certified as baby-friendly.
The Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative is anchored on the "Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding" and the International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes as outlined by the two international health organizations. The Initiative promotes, protects, and supports breastfeeding by ensuring health facilities provide optimal care for mothers and newborns and it has been shown that where the steps are practiced in maternity facilities, there are improvements in initiation and duration of breastfeeding.
“As we celebrate this achievement, I want to reaffirm the Ministry’s commitment to achieving Baby-Friendly certification across all our public maternity and child health facilities. We continue to work with our partners at WHO, UNICEF, and PAHO to sustain this momentum, ensuring that every Jamaican child receives the best start in life, regardless of where they are born.”, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, MP, Minister of Health & Wellness said during the National Certification Ceremony held in New Kingston.
Three of the hospitals were certified for the first time, while Port Antonio Hospital was re-certified following the expiration of its certificate. In the meantime, another six hospitals in the public health system are on track to meet the standard and should receive the Baby-friendly designation by the end of the financial year.
"The protection and promotion of breastfeeding is critically important to the attainment of a child’s right to the highest standard of health. Support for the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative represents part of UNICEF’s efforts to ensure that children have access to quality health services that promote good nutrition practices." Noted, Olga Isaza, UNICEF Jamaica Country Representative.
The core purpose of the Initiative is to ensure that mothers and newborns receive timely and appropriate care before and during their stay in a facility that provides maternity and newborn services, to enable the establishment of optimal feeding of newborns.