South Australian Community Health Research Unit (SACHRU), Flinders University, Adelaide, SA, Australia.
J Hum Lact. 2013 May;29(2):230-5. doi: 10.1177/0890334413477241. Epub 2013 Mar 15.
Australia has high rates of breastfeeding initiation, with a consistent decline over the first year. Furthermore, there is a growing trend of maternal employment and rising numbers of children enrolled in different types of child care services, both of which can have a negative impact on breastfeeding.
To provide evidence to better inform implementation of breastfeeding-friendly strategies in child care settings, this study examined breastfeeding policy and practice in child care centers in metropolitan Adelaide.
The paper reports on a survey sent to 292 child care centers in metropolitan Adelaide in 2010. The survey collected information on center location and type, number of enrolled children under age 2, and number of breastfed babies. The survey also included questions about breastfeeding facilities and support, breastfeeding policies, staff training, and barriers to and recommendations to enhance breastfeeding support in child care centers.
Of the 62 completed returned surveys (21% response rate), 43 centers (69.4%) reported that they currently have children who receive breast milk at the center; however, in most centers, the total number of breastfed children was reported to be between 1 and 4; 76% reported that the center was supportive of exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months; and 80.6% had statements on breastfeeding as part of their food and nutrition policies or guidelines. Furthermore, 64.5% reported there was no formal or informal training for staff on breastfeeding support, but 50% reported that staff members do provide breastfeeding advice to mothers of children in their center.
Despite some strategies in place to support breastfeeding, there are no standards on breastfeeding policies, practices, and training in child care settings. Therefore, the extent and scope of such support depend on parental request and the perceptions and attitudes of child care center staff toward breastfeeding.
澳大利亚的母乳喂养初始率较高，但在第一年持续下降。此外，母亲就业人数不断增加，入读各类儿童保育服务的儿童人数也在增加，这两者都会对母乳喂养产生负面影响。
为了更好地为在儿童保育环境中实施促进母乳喂养的策略提供依据，本研究调查了阿德莱德大都市区儿童保育中心的母乳喂养政策和实践。
本论文报告了 2010 年对阿德莱德大都市区 292 家儿童保育中心进行的一项调查。该调查收集了有关中心位置和类型、2 岁以下入读儿童人数以及母乳喂养婴儿人数的信息。该调查还包括有关母乳喂养设施和支持、母乳喂养政策、员工培训以及在儿童保育中心增强母乳喂养支持的障碍和建议的问题。
在 62 份完成的回复调查中（21%的回复率），43 家中心（69.4%）报告称，目前有在中心接受母乳的儿童；然而，在大多数中心，母乳喂养儿童的总数报告为 1 到 4 人；76%的中心表示支持纯母乳喂养 6 个月；80.6%的中心将母乳喂养作为其食品和营养政策或指南的一部分。此外，64.5%的中心报告称，没有针对员工进行有关母乳喂养支持的正式或非正式培训，但 50%的中心报告称，员工确实会向中心内儿童的母亲提供母乳喂养建议。
尽管存在一些支持母乳喂养的策略，但儿童保育环境中没有关于母乳喂养政策、实践和培训的标准。因此，这种支持的程度和范围取决于家长的要求以及儿童保育中心工作人员对母乳喂养的看法和态度。
