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DHSS Press Release

Rita Landgraf, Secretary
Jill Fredel, Director of Communications
302-255-9047, Pager 302-357-7498
Email: jill.fredel@delaware.gov

Date: December 2, 2016
DHSS-12-2016

MEDIA ADVISORY: DPH TO ANNOUNCE DELAWARE BIRTH HOSPITALS AMONG TOP IN NATION FOR SUPPORT OF BREASTFEEDING MOTHERS

WHO: Karyl Rattay, MD, MS, Director, Division of Public Health (DPH) Dr. David A. Paul, clinical leader of the Women and Children's Service Line and Chair of the Department of Pediatrics at Christiana Care Health System Lauren Durk, RN, BSN - Breastfeeding mother
WHAT: DPH will announce that Delaware now scores among the top three states in the nation for breastfeeding support provided by its birth hospitals. The state's high ranking is listed in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) 2015 national survey of Maternity Practices in Infant Nutrition and Care (mPINC), which measures infant feeding care practices, policies, and staffing expectations at hospitals that provide maternity services. Delaware earned perfect mPINC scores for including breastfeeding in prenatal patient education, hospitals having designated staff members who coordinate lactation care, having an initial feeding of breast milk for both vaginal and cesarean births, and not giving complimentary infant formula samples and marketing products to breastfeeding patients. In July 2015, Delaware became the third state to discontinue complimentary formula gift bags.
WHY: Breastfeeding is a public health priority because it provides optimal nutrition for infants, and protection from illness and disease including sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), diarrhea, ear infections, pneumonia, allergies, and asthma. Babies who are breastfed for six months are less likely to become obese. Additionally, mothers who breastfeed have a reduced risk for breast and ovarian cancers, and lose pregnancy weight faster. The nation's Healthy People 2020 initiative, issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), calls for mothers to breastfeed their infants for at least one year after birth
WHEN: Thursday, Dec. 8, 2016 10:30 a.m.-11:00 a.m.
WHERE: Delaware Technical Community College - Terry Campus Education and Technology Building #700 Room 727 (Main Room) Del-One Conference Center 100 Campus Drive Dover Location Phone: 302-857-1000 * The announcement will be made during the quarterly meeting of the Delaware Healthy Mother and Infant Consortium (DHMIC).
QUESTIONS: 302-744-4704

Delaware Health and Social Services is committed to improving the quality of the lives of Delaware's citizens by promoting health and well-being, fostering self-sufficiency, and protecting vulnerable populations. DPH, a division of DHSS, urges Delawareans to make healthier choices with the 5-2-1 Almost None campaign: eat 5 or more fruits and vegetables each day, have no more than 2 hours of recreational screen time each day (includes TV, computer, gaming), get 1 or more hours of physical activity each day, and drink almost no sugary beverages.

MEDIA ADVISORY: DPH TO ANNOUNCE DELAWARE BIRTH HOSPITALS AMONG TOP IN NATION FOR SUPPORT OF BREASTFEEDING MOTHERS

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