 Blackfeet Community Hospital Congratulations to the Obstetrics Department of Blackfeet Community Hospital (BCH), an Indian Health Service hospital in Browning, Montana, which recently won a 2015 Health Hero award from the Eat Right Montana Coalition and the Montana Action for Healthy Kids Team! This statewide award is given to individuals or organizations that have done exceptional work to promote healthy nutrition or physical activity. Blackfeet Community Hospital was given the award for their wonderful achievement of Baby-Friendly Hospital designation, which occurred in November 2014. The CHAMPS team interviewed Kirsten Krane, MS-MPH, RDN, former Public Health Nutritionist for the Blackfeet Reservation and current American Indian/Alaska Native CHAMPS Project Manager, who helped lead BCH through the process of becoming Baby-Friendly.  Members of the Blackfeet Community Hospital team holding their Baby-Friendly plaque. From left to right: Susan Head, Linda Dusterhoff, Margaret Anne Yellow Kidney, Charlene Ramirez, Kirsten Krane. "It was a long, rough 2.5 year road to becoming Baby-friendly!" says Kirsten. "When we started, both in-patient nursing supervisor positions were vacant, our doctors were chronically overworked and hesitant to take on a new challenge like Baby-friendly... by the end we were a generally organized and robust team working to improve the health of mothers and babies... becoming Baby-friendly was a huge accomplishment and point of pride." To read more about Blackfeet Community Hospital winning a 2015 Health Hero award, visit the Indian Health Service Director’s Blog.  Joan Rooney Joan Rooney, RN, MSN, IBCLC, is Assistant Vice President of Women’s and Neonatal Service and CHAMPS Team Leader at Ochsner Medical Center-West Bank (OMCWB) in Gretna, Louisiana, where she has worked for 40 years. Joan is determined to help the hospital achieve Baby-Friendly designation before planning to retire in the next few years to spend more time with her out-of-state grandchildren. OMCWB is currently in the Development phase of the 4-D pathway and will be entering the Dissemination (3rd) phase this month, thanks to Joan and her team’s great efforts! Joan says skin-to-skin care immediately following birth has been the most exciting change at their hospital, and has been positively received by their staff, physicians and patients. 24-hour rooming-in has been their biggest challenge in terms of changing nurse and physician behavior and reassuring parents that staff will be available for their safety. For Joan, the time seems right to forge ahead: “I see our community changing before my eyes—I see all our area hospitals and clinics statewide not being competitive but collaborative. The momentum is here and we have the support coming from state [and] national levels. We need to seize the moment!” Note: This post has been transferred from CHAMPSbreastfeed.org. There were originally 4 comments. You can view them in this document.  Dr. Sarah Broom Sarah Broom, MD, is the Medical Director of Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi (BCBSMS), pioneers in their endorsement of the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) across the state, their work with hospitals in Mississippi on Baby-Friendly practices, and their leadership. Sarah is leading the work with BCBSMS, and they are partnering with CHAMPS to promote Baby-Friendly designation to all of BCBSMS Network Hospitals that deliver babies in Mississippi and to host three regional education conferences geared toward empowering the staff of those hospitals to achievement of this designation. The first of these conferences occurred on September 11, 2015 in Tupelo, MS; the second occurred on November 11, 2015 in Jackson, MS; and the third will occur on February 16, 2016 on the Gulf Coast (location TBD). BCBSMS is also supporting the BFHI as a member of the Advisory Board of the Mississippi Perinatal Quality Collaborative, which includes the promotion of breastfeeding among its mission and areas of focus.  Dr. Sarah Broom with CHAMPS team members at the Sept. 11 conference in Tupelo, MS. From left to right: Dr. Sarah Broom, Dr. Anne Merewood, Laura Burnham, and Kirsten Krane. What are Sarah’s—and BCBSMS’—dreams for this project? As she says: “Our goals are to improve maternity care for Mississippi mothers and babies. Through this work, we aim to improve infant nutrition and to see all delivering hospitals in Mississippi achieve the Baby-Friendly Hospital designation. This work is not just important for our covered members. The Baby-Friendly Hospital designation will support our Network Hospitals in providing the highest quality, evidence-based care to all Mississippi mothers and babies.”  Mobolaji (“Bolaji”) Famuyide, MD, MA, MPH, is the physician CHAMPion in Newborn Medicine/Pediatrics at the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) supporting their journey towards Baby-Friendly designation. She has worked at UMMC since 2008, where she is an Associate Professor and Neonatologist, and the Medical Director of the NICU and Nursery Services. Bolaji is also involved in breastfeeding research and advocacy, and is the co-Medical Director of the Mother’s Milk Bank of Mississippi. We are proud to have Bolaji participating in CHAMPS and grateful for her contributions to various CHAMPS webinars. UMMC is in the last phase (Designation) of the 4-D pathway, in large part because of the tireless efforts of Bolaji and the Mother-Baby Care Team. She has worked with the obstetrics team to establish a Mother Baby Unit to support couplet care and rooming-in. She has also worked to establish the process of skin-to-skin immediately post-delivery. Lastly, there will be a well-baby clinic with lactation support for breastfeeding mothers post-discharge (available early 2016). There has been an increase in breastfeeding initiation rates among all mothers at UMMC and in particular mothers of the inborn extremely preterm infants admitted to their NICU, reports Bolaji. When asked to share a piece of advice to others seeking to create change within a hospital, Bolaji recommends: “Read and read and embrace Kotter's 8 steps for leading change. A guiding coalition with a shared vision is crucial.” Note: This post has been transferred from CHAMPSbreastfeed.org. There were originally 6 comments. You can view them here and here. |
CHEER Champion of the weekEach Monday (besides public holidays), we will recognize a CHEER Champion for all the support they have provided for CHEER, CHAMPS, or the general public. Archives
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