Childcare center directors from left to right: Jessica Cornue of Celebration Children’s Center, Penny Noll of Cazenovia Children’s House, Jennifer Britton of Morrisville Children’s Center, and Denise Dinski of Chenango Nursery School. Missing from photo: Lena Froio of Oneida Area Daycare and Tricia Narolis of Oneida Indian Nation Early Learning Center.
(Madison County, NY – Nov. 12, 2013) The Madison County Department of Health is pleased to announce that all six of the childcare centers with infant rooms in Madison County have met the criteria to receive the Breastfeeding Friendly Childcare designation. The Healthy Start Partnership worked with the Cazenovia Children’s House, Celebrations Children’s Center in Canastota, Chenango Nursery School in Hamilton, Morrisville Children’s Center, Oneida Area Daycare, and Oneida Indian Nation Early Learning Center as part of a county-wide initiative.
To make breastfeeding easier for women, the U.S. Surgeon General identified 20 key actions to improve support for breastfeeding. One key action is to ensure that all child care providers accommodate the needs of breastfeeding mothers and infants.
A center that is breastfeeding friendly:
Provides an atmosphere that welcomes breastfeeding families
Helps mothers continue to breastfeed when they return to work or school
Makes breastfeeding resources available to parents
Feeds infants on demand and coordinates feeding times with parent’s schedule
Trains staff so they are able to support breastfeeding
Has a written breastfeeding policy
The centers developed or updated their breastfeeding policy, identified a private space for mothers to breastfeed or pump, and took steps to make their centers more comforting and welcoming to breastfeeding moms. The Child Care Council of Cornell Cooperative Extension trained nearly 50 staff on how to support mothers with breastfeeding.
Center directors expressed how important it is to support moms in breastfeeding and said they were willing to do whatever they could to make it easier for moms to continue breastfeeding their babies. Some centers have a space that is used daily while others will make accommodations when they have a mom who needs a private space. Centers made their breastfeeding room more warm, cozy, and inviting. Each center received a certificate and a window decal that reads “Breastfed Babies Welcome Here”.
For more information on breastfeeding resources in Madison County, visit www.healthymadisoncounty.org.