Presbyterian Rockwall pioneers project to improve breastfeeding rates

(ROCKWALL-January 28, 2013) Breastfeeding is one of the most effective preventive health measures for infants and mothers. Despite the many benefits of breastfeeding, only 13.7 percent of Texas mothers exclusively breastfeed for six months. To help reverse this trend, Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Rockwall embarked on a program to emphasize the importance of breastfeeding to the moms in the community.

As part of its emphasis, Texas Health Rockwall applied for and was selected as one of the first hospitals in the state to participate in a five-year quality improvement project to support breastfeeding. A group of 20 hospitals/facilities have joined together in The Texas Ten Step Star Achiever Breastfeeding Learning Collaborative, which aims to help birthing facilities create environments that will increase the percentage of breastfeeding, with the goal of exclusive breastfeeding.

Breastfeeding provides the best start in life for infants, notes Charlie Homer, MD, MPH, president and CEO of NICHQ (the National Initiative for Children’s Healthcare Quality). “Although so many women want to breastfeed their infants, too few women succeed. This project will help hospitals give mothers and their infants a greater chance at success. What these hospitals learn will help other hospitals across the state achieve greater and greater success.”

“The benefits of breastfeeding cannot be ignored” says hospital lactation consultant, Cindee Phillips, RN, IBCLC. “Texas Health Rockwall has dedicated itself to making sure that everyone is well educated on the subject. But moms need more than just facts. It takes commitment to coach new moms over the hurdles that sometimes happen. Our goal is to help each new mom get to their goal of exclusively breastfeeding their baby by not just offering support while here in the hospital, but also with an outpatient support program through visits and support groups.”

Facilities participating in the project will learn how to conduct small tests of change, collect data on progress, 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 the Texas Ten Step Program, a statewide effort to improve infant health and increase rates of exclusive breastfeeding.

“The 20 facilities are responsible for more than 48,000 births each year,” says NICHQ Project Director Jennifer Ustianov. “Texas has the second largest population of children in the entire country so it has the opportunity to be a leader in improving breastfeeding rates nationwide.”

The 20 facilities participating in cohort A of the Texas Ten Step Star Achiever Breastfeeding Learning Collaborative are: