Marshall Achieves Baby Friendly Hospital Designation

Marshall was officially designated as a Baby Friendly Hospital by the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF. Such designation is the globally recognized symbol of world-class maternity care and followed a rigorous survey of Marshall's related practices the preceding February.

What is the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative?

The Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) is a global program sponsored by the WHO and UNICEF to encourage and recognize hospitals and birthing centers to offer the optimal level of newborn infant feeding—namely, exclusive breast feeding except for medically-indicated formula use. The BFHI assists hospitals in giving mothers the information, confidence and skills needed to successfully initiate and continue breastfeeding; it gives special recognition to hospitals that implement and follow these programs.

To qualify as a Baby Friendly Hospital, a hospital must demonstrate and practice the following 10 aspects of successful breastfeeding protocol:

Maintain a written breastfeeding policy that is routinely communicated to all healthcare staff.
Train all healthcare staff in the skills necessary to implement this policy.
Inform all pregnant women about the benefits and management of breastfeeding.
Help mothers to initiate breastfeeding within one hour of birth.
Show mothers how to breastfeed and how to maintain lactation, even if they are separated from their babies.
Give infants no food or drink other than breast milk, unless medically indicated.
Practice rooming in—allow mothers and babies to stay together 24 hours a day.
Encourage unrestricted breastfeeding.
Give no pacifiers or artificial nipples to breastfeeding infants.
Foster the establishment of breastfeeding support groups and refer mothers to them upon discharge.

Although Marshall has been practicing Baby Friendly protocol for several years, it has taken that long to get the formal programs in place to certify and prove that our procedures meet the criteria as set forth by the surveyors. Now that Marshall is a designated Baby Friendly Hospital, patients can be assured of the world-class level of maternity care they will enjoy at our hospital.

Related Reviews

My husband and I had a FANTASTIC experience at Marshall Birth Center. First, we decided to take a tour of the facility before our baby was born - when you go in, you’re greeted by a friendly admin staff. The center has spacious, private rooms with a pull out bed for your significant other to sleep in, a huge jetted tub to relax in (as much as you can) during labor, access to some basic food items (my hubby appreciated this), birthing and peanut balls to help assist with labor, and most importantly, the BEST nursing staff ever. We had to come in several times before the birth of our baby to do some NSTs to make sure our babe was doing ok, so we had the chance to meet a lot of staff and see a lot of the different things they do for a mom when she comes to the hospital. Melissa and Haley were the NST nurses we saw, and they were friendly and eased our concerns when we didn’t know what was going on. When it came time for the big event to happen, we checked in for an early induction and were cared for by Kristy, Mariam, Rachel, and Peyton. I don’t know if I could say enough good things about these 4 wonderful ladies. They made my 32 hour labor seem like a piece of cake- in fact, they had me laughing and joking most of the time (even between pushes). Not only were they extremely informative and kept me knowing what was going, but they comforted me when they could see I was stressed or in pain and they truly made it a pleasant experience. I would be friends with each of them outside of this experience, and I actually miss them now that I am not in the hospital! Not only did they completely cater to my needs and emotions, but they also really eased my husband’s mind and made this a “fun” and less stressful event for him as well, which helped me relax. My doctors, Dr. Cherry and Dr. Tobin-Williams were also wonderful; kept me informed of my options for pain managements and were friendly and familiar faces (since I had seen both of them while pregnant). Ariel, the anesthesiologist, was friendly and professional, and came in a day later to check on me and baby to make sure everything was going ok, which was very appreciated. Our two pediatricians, Dr. Rendla and Dr. Christiansen, were great with our baby, very informative, and both my husband and I feel incredibly comfortable with either of them treating our baby for the next several years of his childhood. Nanci, Katie, and Sharon were our postpartum nurses and were also very informative about what to expect when taking baby home (they all swaddled like pros!) and made sure our stay was as comfortable as possible. Jamie and Christine, were our two amazing lactation consultants. Jamie was SO sweet and helpful in the hospital, showing me how to get the proper latch, talking me through proper diet for someone in my situation (breastfeeding with PCOS), and she checked up on us before we left to make sure we had everything figured out. Christine called to check up a few days later to make sure everything was still going well and ask if I had any questions, and was so friendly and nice- I know that if I ever have any concerns, I can call them without any fear of judgement or being embarrassed. Also wanted to mention how appreciative we were for the friendly interactions with Lisa and Jessica, charge nurses, and the housekeeping staff (I didn’t catch their names) who brought my meals, took out garbage, and made sure we had enough clean linens and pillows. The smallest things made a huge difference. Thank you very much to everyone Marshall Birth Center!
Kim K.
As a Douala, I have attended several births here. The staff is amazing and the setting is lovely! In-room tubs are wonderful for laboring -- a wonderful addition to the new Birth Center. Every person who enters the room is friendly, professional, and personal. I speak of highest recommendations to my clients birthing at Marshall Birth Center!
L. H.

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