Baby-Friendly Initiative Recognizes STPH
Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative selects St. Tammany Parish Hospital
Albany, NY - Baby-Friendly USA announced today St. Tammany Parish Hospital has received prestigious international recognition as a Designated Baby-Friendly birth facility.
“We are honored to be named among America’s leading baby-friendly facilities,” Cindy Ingram, STPH director of women’s and children’s services, said. “St. Tammany Parish Hospital is well known locally as the best place to have your baby, and now we have confirmation nationally, we’re the place to learn best practices for breastfeeding your baby.”
Baby-Friendly USA Inc., is the U.S. authority for the implementation of the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI), a global program sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
The initiative encourages and recognizes hospitals and birthing centers that offer an optimal level of care for breastfeeding mothers and their babies.
Based on the Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding, this prestigious international award recognizes birth facilities that offer breastfeeding mothers the information, confidence, and skills needed to successfully initiate and continue breastfeeding their babies.
Currently, there are only 539 Baby–Friendly Designated facilities in the United States and 16 facilities in Louisiana.
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A full-service acute care facility committed to providing world-class healthcare and the latest technology, St. Tammany Parish Hospital delivers today’s life-improving procedures with the utmost care to area residents with emphasis on wellness, preventive care and disease management close to home. STPH is recognized for quality, safety and the patient experience by CareChex, Leapfrog, Healthgrades, Hospital Compare, Women’s Choice and US News & World Report. St. Tammany Parish Hospital is an independent service district in a clinically integrated partnership with Ochsner Health System. Together, the two organizations focus on aligning their healthcare offerings to best serve patients and families in west St. Tammany and surrounding areas. Under their agreement, the two organizations retain their autonomy; neither partner manages nor owns the other. STPH is a self-supporting not-for-profit community hospital; it receives no tax funding. Learn more at stph.org.
There are more than 20,000 designated Baby-Friendly hospitals and birth centers worldwide. Currently there are 539 active Baby-Friendly hospitals and birth centers in the United States. The “Baby-Friendly” re-designation is given after a rigorous on-site survey is completed. The award is maintained by continuing to practice the Ten Steps as demonstrated by quality processes. Learn more at babyfriendlyusa.org.