Midwives and health visitors in Grimsby, Scunthorpe, and Goole have achieved a prestigious international award for their breastfeeding and infant feeding programme.
Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust (NLAG), in collaboration with health visiting teams in North and North East Lincolnshire, has achieved the Baby Friendly Initiative (BFI) Gold Award, run by international charity UNICEF.
The teams received the accolade for embarking on a 16-year journey to deliver gold-standard feeding care for babies across all three towns, ensuring families across the area receive the highest quality care.
Yvonne McGrath, Group Director of Midwifery at NHS Humber Health Partnership, the organisation running NLAG and Hull University Teaching Hospitals, said the teams had shown “outstanding commitment” to improving the health and wellbeing of parents and their babies.
She said: “Achieving this international recognition is just reward for almost 16 years dedicated to ensuring babies in this area get the best start in life. We remain dedicated to offering exceptional care and support for families.
“Achieving the Baby Friendly Gold Award is a testament to the region’s ongoing efforts to improve the health and wellbeing of mothers and infants.”
The BFI Gold Award recognises excellence in providing comprehensive, evidence-based, and sustainable infant feeding services.
Consultant Midwives Leanne Ellis and Sarah Wise led the BFI project at Diana, Princess of Wales Hospital and Scunthorpe General Hospital.
One of the biggest impacts was the introduction of a frenulotomy service – where more than 300 babies born with “tongue tie” underwent procedure known as ‘division of the frenulum’ at Scunthorpe and Grimsby instead of having to travel to Sheffield. A survey showed 85pc of mum were happy with the service, which is expected to improve breastfeeding rates.
NLaG’s staff now link up with health visitors in North and North East Lincolnshire to ensure new parents get consistent advice and high-quality care. Both teams also undergo regular training in breastfeeding and infant feeding practices to ensure they remain at the forefront of advances and new developments.
Government investment in Family Hubs means infant feeding teams have been expanded by the local authorities, meaning new mums can be visited at home and given breastfeeding support in the first few weeks after giving birth.
In North Lincolnshire, the team has used its expansion to enhance antenatal education, empowering mothers to make informed choices about their babies’ well-being and feeding journeys.
Amanda Anderson and Lorraine Coyne are the Infant Feeding Leads at Diana, Princess of Wales Hospital in Grimsby, and Lexie Jackson is the Infant Feeding Lead at Scunthorpe General Hospital.
Lexie said: “We are incredibly proud to have reached this milestone in collaboration with our partners. This award is not just a reflection of the dedication and teamwork of our staff but also of our strong partnership with North and North East Lincolnshire health visiting teams.
“Together, we’ve demonstrated an unwavering commitment to supporting parents and caregivers in the best way possible.
“We could not have achieved this without the incredible teamwork and commitment of everyone involved.”