Lactation and Breastfeeding Support

The Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) is a global program launched by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in 1991 to encourage and recognize hospitals and birthing centers that offer an optimal level of care for infant feeding and mother/baby bonding.

The heart of the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative is the Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding, supported by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) as a worldwide plan to improve breastfeeding rates.

Our promise to you. We will:

1. Have hospital feeding practices that are known to everyone who takes care of you and your baby.
2. Train health care staff to help you learn to breastfeed your baby.
3. Tell you and all pregnant women about the benefits of breastfeeding and how to breastfeed.
4. Help you start feeding within one hour of birth.
5. Show you how to protect your milk supply even if you have to be away from your baby.
6. Give your baby no food other than breast milk unless there is a medical reason.
7. Keep you and your baby together while you are in the hospital.
8. Support you to feed your baby whenever your baby wants to eat.
9. Keep pacifiers away so your baby learns to breastfeed first.
10. Make sure you know where to get help with feeding your baby once you are home.

We also promise to follow the International Code of Marketing of Breast Milk Substitutes. We will do this by refusing to accept supplies of breast milk substitutes and feeding supplies at no cost or below fair market cost, by protecting new parents from influence of vendors of such items, by practicing in accordance with its vendor policy, and by educating staff members about the Code and its role in ethical health care practice.

• Prenatal breastfeeding classes
• Visits in the hospital after the birth of your baby
• Support for families with babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care and Pediatric units
• Visits with you and your new family to help you with breastfeeding after you are home
• Baby and Me Support Groups for families with infants during the first year
• Phone support throughout your breastfeeding experience
• Hospital-grade electric breast pump rental program
• Oregon WIC and Washington State Sea Mar hospital-grade pump loan program partners
• Local drop-off sites for breast milk donation to Northwest Mother’s Milk Bank