(ROWLETT, TX – August 31, 2015) Lake Pointe Medical Center has joined the Texas Ten Step Star Achiever Breastfeeding Learning Collaborative, a five-year quality improvement project aimed at developing facility environments that support a mother’s choice to breastfeed. Currently, only 21.3 percent of Texas mothers exclusively breastfeed for six months – the AAP recommendation. Breastfeeding is one of the most effective preventive health measures for infants and mothers and LPMC, along with 33 other Texas hospitals, hopes to increase exclusive breastfeeding rates among new mothers by creating hospital settings where a woman’s choice concerning breastfeeding can be best supported.
“We are very excited to be a part of this collective effort that helps support new mothers in their choice to breastfeed,” said Jamie Hambrick, Women’s Services Manager at LPMC. “Lake Pointe Medical Center delivers more than 1,400 babies annually, and providing every new infant and mother with a compassionate environment in which to breastfeed is an integral part of the quality care and family centered approach we provide our patients.”
The effort is being led by NICHQ and is funded by the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) and the Texas Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC). This is the last of three cohorts of the initiative, which in total includes 74 birthing facilities.
“We’ve seen incredible results in the first two cohorts and we’re looking forward to continuing that success and spreading evidence-based maternity care practices to even more hospitals and birthing centers throughout the state,” says Julie Stagg, State Breastfeeding Coordinator at the Texas Department of State Health Services. “The real winners at the end of the day are Texas mothers and babies.”
NICHQ has a track record of identifying, designing and implementing innovative and practical strategies to help healthcare systems improve the quality of care they provide. Facilities participating in the project will learn how to conduct small tests of change, collect data on progress, connect with community partners like local WIC agencies to ensure consistent breastfeeding messages and education, and ultimately make beneficial, sustainable improvements that support breastfeeding. NICHQ will also bring the teams together virtually and in-person to share lessons, promote collaboration and learn from improvement and breastfeeding experts. The project aligns with a statewide effort to improve maternal and infant health outcomes and increase rates of exclusive breastfeeding.
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