The Ministry of Health’s Food Policy Division, in partnership with the Pan American Health Organisation/World Health Organisation (PAHO/WHO) has inaugurated the second phase of a five-day Focal Point Training programme for the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI).
A Ministry of Health press release said that the second phase was building from last year’s collaboration. This initiative aims to recertify previously certified hospitals as baby-friendly and accredit other maternity and newborn services providers. The overarching goal of the BFHI project, the release said, is to enhance infant health outcomes and save lives by championing breastfeeding promotion, protection, and support.
The 11 focal points in this phase consisted of health workers specialised in midwifery and affiliated with public health hospitals who were identified to undergo training as trainers. These midwives will serve as the BFHI focal points in each region and are expected to play a pivotal role in driving the implementation and facilitation of the BFHI programme across all ten regions of Guyana. The facility recertification will be done as often as every two years to ensure that continued compliance with the ten steps to successful breastfeeding is maintained.
According to the release, Director of Family and Primary Health Care Services Dr Ertenisa Hamilton, in her remarks at the Cara Lodge, said that in order to see more behavioural change among patients more education sessions are needed at an early stage. “The earlier you start exposing people to information the easier it is to have the behavioural change that we’re looking for; our antenatal clinics see at least 96% and over pregnant women on a yearly basis so we have no room to say that there isn’t a platform for us to begin the conversation about education on breastfeeding.…’’, she was quoted as saying.
The release said Dr Hamilton encouraged the health care workers to develop new approaches and strategies to improve health education at their respective facilities. “Education begins within our clinics and it should begin even before we begin clinics. Understanding very clearly that there are many entry points within the system where education can begin, the Ministry of Education has their health and family life education programme.
That is a good entry point for us to begin the conversation about nutrition especially when we look at the context of child survival,” the release quoted her as saying.
Also present at the workshop were National Breastfeeding Coordinator Food Policy Division Gillian Trim, PAHO Consultant Ninian Blair, BFHI Coordinator Neibert Tucker and representatives from the main public hospitals in all ten regions.
