Birthcare Baby Friendly Hospital Accreditation

NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Release

Birthcare First To Be Awarded

Birthcare is the first maternity facility in New Zealand to be accredited a “Baby Friendly Hospital” by the New Zealand Breastfeeding Authority.

Supported by the Ministry of Health, the “Baby Friendly Hospital” accreditation is part of a worldwide initiative set up by the World Health Organisation supporting breastfeeding as the ideal form of baby nutrition.

The New Zealand Breastfeeding Authority has developed this Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) for New Zealand. Julie Stufkens, Coordinator of the New Zealand Breastfeeding Authority, congratulates Birthcare on their recent BFHI accreditation. “Birthcare’s accreditation as a Baby Friendly Hospital represents a commitment to a high standard of post-natal care, to breastfeeding and the care for all mothers”.

“Increasing the number of infants breastfed and the duration of breastfeeding has been shown to have positive health benefits for the mother and infant,” she says.

“Birthcare is about giving babies the BEST possible start in life – from birthing through to post natal care. We have trained midwives and lactation consultants on hand to assist new mothers with breastfeeding. In fact 96% of our mothers are confidently breastfeeding at time of discharge from Birthcare,” said Lee Mathias, Managing Director, Birthcare.

Birthcare provides a private healthcare standard of maternity care, which is a free service publicly funded for women and their babies. The facilities are available to pregnant women in the greater Auckland area and North Waikato, with plans to extend the service throughout New Zealand. The Birthcare model demonstrates the success of quality “private facilities” provided by the public health system.

Birthcare offers complete maternity care including fully subsidised pregnancy and parenting education, birthing and post-natal facilities and midwifery support for labour, birth and in-patient post natal care. Birthcare is appropriate for any woman expecting a normal labour and delivery. Mothers can also transfer to Birthcare for their postnatal stay after a caesarean section delivery in another facility.

ENDS

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