Background and Objectives: Tennessee has low breastfeeding rates and has identified opportunities for improvement to enhance maternity practices to support breastfeeding mothers. We sought a 10% relative increase in the aggregate Joint Commission measure of breastfeeding exclusivity at discharge (TJC PC-05) by focusing on high-reliability (≥90%) implementation of processes that promote breastfeeding in the delivery setting. Methods: A statewide, multidisciplinary development team reviewed evidence from the WHO-UNICEF “Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding” to create a consensus toolkit of process indicators aligned with the Ten Steps. Hospitals submitted monthly TJC PC-05 data for 6 months while studying local implementation of the Ten Steps to identify improvement opportunities, and for an additional 11 months while conducting tests of change to improve Ten Steps implementation using Plan-Do-Study-Act cycles, local process audits, and control charts. Data were aggregated at the state level and presented at 12 monthly webinars, 3 regional learning sessions, and 1 statewide meeting where teams shared their local data and implementation experiences. Results: Thirteen hospitals accounting for 47% of live births in Tennessee submitted data on 31,183 mother–infant dyads from August 1, 2012, to December 31, 2013. Aggregate monthly mean PC-05 demonstrated “special cause” improvement increasing from 37.1% to 41.2%, an 11.1% relative increase. Five hospitals reported implementation of ≥5 of the Ten Steps and two hospitals reported ≥90% reliability on ≥5 of the Ten Steps using locally designed process audits. Conclusion: Using large-scale improvement methodology, a successful statewide collaborative led to >10% relative increase in breastfeeding exclusivity at discharge in participating Tennessee hospitals. Further opportunities for improvement in implementing breastfeeding supportive practices were identified.

Master of Public Health - MPH / Background: Severe acute malnutrition contributes disproportionately to child mortality rates despite availability of the WHO protocol, “Ten Steps”, to guide hospital management. Auditing morbidity and mortality rates of malnourished children at hospitals is useful to measure the effectiveness of hospital-based management compared to standards advocated by the WHO protocol. The study aimed to assess the adequacy of clinical management practices for severely malnourished children admitted to three district hospitals in the Western Cape as compared to the WHO guidelines. Objectives: To describe prognostic indicators on admission such as clinical severity of malnutrition and co-morbidities such as HIV, TB, diarrhoea and pneumonia. To assess the management practices of severe malnutrition against the key principles of management during the stabilisation phase as outlined by the WHO guidelines. To describe the number of severely malnourished children who were treated for or died due to preventable complications (hypothermia, hypoglycaemia, dehydration, over-hydration, infection, electrolyte imbalance). Methodology: A retrospective, descriptive study based on a folder review of medical records of 83 severely malnourished children admitted to the Stellenbosch, Helderberg and Eersteriver hospitals from September 2009 to June 2011 was done. viii Structured data collection was undertaken to capture data to allow assessment of the clinician’s management practices, and the adequacy thereof in implementing the first six steps of the WHO protocol guidelines. Results The predominant co-morbidities in the sample were diarrhoea in 51% ofcases and pneumonia in 33%. Thirteen percent were HIV infected, 28% of the sample had TB. Clinical signs were poorly documented by clinicians. The highest percentage of adequate management practices was for treatment of infections with 90% of patients receiving antibiotics. The second best management practice was for treatment of electrolyte and micronutrient deficiency. Hypoglycaemia and hypothermia were poorly managed as children developed these complications in the hospitals and yet these complications were still left untreated. Nineteen percent of the sample needed transfer to a specialist hospital. Conclusion The study concludes that overall management practices for children admitted with severe acute malnutrition to three district hospitals in the Western Cape was poor and often did not adhere to the WHO guidelines. Doctors showed poor understanding of the need for accurate assessment and monitoring in order to reduce the mortality risk of these patients.

The natural practice of breastfeeding has been strongly noted as one of the most cost-effective, health promoting, disease-prevention strategies of the 21st century. Although primary health organizations recommend exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months of life with added complementary foods and continued breastfeeding up to 2 years of age or longer, many mothers do not breastfeed their infants for the recommendation length of time. Applied policies and health practices, such as those described under the 10 Steps to Successful Breastfeeding and The International Code of Marketing of Breast Milk Substitutes, have been noted as contributing factors that can considerably impact the manner which women choose to feed their infants. A cross-sectional methodology assessed associations between maternity health practices and breastfeeding duration among women birthing in the United States. A secondary data analysis of the Infant Feeding Practice Study II and its Year 6 Follow-Up was conducted using IBM SPSS Statistics Version 24. Procedures for data analysis included frequencies, Ï?2 tests, and ordinal logistic regressions. Outcomes revealed that feeding infants any formula during their hospital stay drastically reduces the likelihood for prolonged breastfeeding duration. Study results also concluded that offering a pacifier to infants during their hospital stay reduced the length of breastfeeding duration. This study confirms many of the primary breastfeeding practices that are at the frontline of maternity patient care in the United States. Establishing well-grounded practices that aid in the long-term duration of breastfeeding could help save lives and improve child and maternal health outcomes within the United States.

The purpose of this study was to conduct evaluation research on the implementation of the Baby and Mother Friendly Initiative in Namibia in order to identify its successes and failures, as well as to develop guidelines for the strengthening of the programme. An evaluation research design using a sequential mixed-methods approach to collect qualitative and quantitative data was conducted. In phase 1, qualitative data were collected through face-to-face interviews. Participants were the chief health programme officer for nutrition at national level and nurse managers in charge of the baby and mother friendly hospitals. In phase 2, quantitative data were collected from 391 registered and enrolled nurses/midwives working in the baby and mother friendly hospitals through a self-administered questionnaire. Both phases 1 and 2 indicated partial implementation of the Baby and Mother Friendly Initiative programme. Factors influencing the implementation positively or negatively were identified. The integrated findings formed the basis of guidelines to strengthen the programme. Nine guidelines were developed and validated. / Health Studies / D.Litt. et Phil. (Health Studies)