Community Partners Implementing the Blueprint: Continuity of Care in Breastfeeding Support Cohort II
  
With support from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity (CDC/DNPAO), NACCHO selected seven local-level organizations to strengthen community lactation support, through the implementation of the Continuity of Care in Breastfeeding Support: A Blueprint for Communities. This funding opportunity aims to support the implementation of Continuity of Care (CoC) strategies by local-level organizations among oppressed communities with historically low rates of chest/breastfeeding. Selected applicants include Community Partners Implementing the Blueprint (Nov22-July23): Awardees: Lactancia Latina of Southwest Kansas (KS), Jefferson County Public Health (CO), Harbor MedStar Hospital (MD), BreastfeedLA (CA), Partnership for A Healthy Lincoln (NE), Knox County Health Department (TN), Sauk County Health Department (WI). 

Grantees are working with at least two other key partners to implement strategies from at least four (4) Blueprint recommendations. The project period has started and will end on July 31, 2023.


Continuity of Care in Breastfeeding Support Awardees:

Lactancia Latina of Southwest Kansas, is a regional breastfeeding coalition, working in partnership with Kansas Breastfeeding Coalition, Ford County Breastfeeding Coalition, three local Health departments, Russel Child Development Center, Wichita State University, and two local hospitals. Together, they are working on Blueprint Recommendations 2, 3, 4, and 6 to improve the continuity of care in rural, Latinx communities. Their goals are to 1) develop a billing guide for lactation service insurance reimbursement, 2) Understand how health agencies are collecting and sharing local breastfeeding data, and 3) implement Breastfeeding-Friendly designations at childcare, school district, and local health departments.

Jefferson County Public Health, is a local health department in Colorado, working in partnership with two local Latinx organizations, Cuenta Conmigo Lactancia, and Edgewater Collective. Together, they are working on Blueprint Recommendations 2, 4, 5, and 6 to improve continuity of care among local Latinx and low-income communities. Their goals are to 1) provide lactation-friendly childcare training to 40 home childcare providers and/or families, 2) create one impact report based on data collected during trainings and interviews with local families, 3) offer continuing education opportunities for community lactation educators; and 4) facilitate two monthly community support groups meetings, and at least 5 monthly culturally responsive lactation and feeding care home visits.

Harbor MedStar Hospital, is a nonprofit hospital located in Baltimore County, Maryland, working in partnership with the Healthy Babies Collaborative, B’more for Healthy Babies, the City of Refuge Baltimore, and three local nonprofit organizations. Together, they are implementing Blueprint Recommendations 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 to improve continuity of care among historically underserved communities in South Baltimore. Their goals are to 1) expand and promote breastfeeding support in the Baltimore metro area to reach more families in convenient and safe community locations, 2) grow the statewide electronic prenatal risk assessment (ePRA), 3) provide evidence-based lactation education to clinical services and community partners, 4) implement a social needs screening, and refer participants to appropriate services, and 5) improve maternal and child health outcomes for demographics disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

BreastfeedLA, is a lactation advocacy organization, working in partnership with two local clinics and two BIPOC Baby Cafés. Together, they are working on Blueprint Recommendations 1, 2, 3, 5, and 6 to improve continuity of care among African American, Asian Pacific Islander, and Hispanic/Latinx communities in Long Beach, California. Their goals are to 1) increase by 1 the number of free prenatal classes and lactation support clinics supporting African American clients in the community, 2) create a marketing campaign that normalizes human milk feeding and promotes local lactation services in the community, 3) research and implement billings for lactation services for all patients who are eligible through the Comprehensive Perinatal Services Program, 4) increase by 1 the number of clinical lactation students of color in clinical settings and support these students with IBCLC exam and career guidance.

Partnership for A Healthy Lincoln is a nonprofit organization working with The Lincoln Community Breastfeeding Initiative, two birthing hospitals, and the Lincoln Lancaster County Health Department WIC and Family Service Lincoln. Together, they are working on Blueprint Recommendations 2, 4, 5, and 6 to improve CoC among BIPOC populations in Lincoln.  Their goals are to 1) finalize a community dashboard that captures multiple sources of local, disaggregated breastfeeding data,  2) Increase by 10 the number of trained breastfeeding educators, and build a roadmap to increase the diversity of their lactation support workforce and mentorship programs for IBCLCs, 3) increase the diversity of their existing health campaigns to normalize breastfeeding within Latinx, Asian Americans, and possibly LGBTQIA communities, and 4) provide training on cultural humility, implicit biases and trauma-informed care to their lactation workforce

Knox County Health Department is a local department of health in Eastern Tennessee, working in partnership with The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for WIC, Knox County’s Fetal and Infant Mortality Review Program, the University of Tennessee Medical Center, and the University of Tennessee – Knoxville Department of Nutrition. Together, they are working on implementing Blueprint Recommendations 1, 4, 5, 6, and 7 to improve continuity of care among historically marginalized populations in their community. Their goals are to 1) train local health professionals on how to support lactation services in the community, 2) convene a maternal and child health workgroup to integrate breastfeeding promotion and support into two health department initiatives, 3) raise awareness about assets and barriers to chest/breastfeeding by digitally recording five chest/breastfeeding families’ stories, and 4) establish a breastfeeding coalition in Knox County.

Sauk County Health Department is a local health department located in Wisconsin, working in partnership with the three Ho-Chunk Nation services, and the Wisconsin Breastfeeding Coalition. Together, they are working on implementing Blueprint Recommendations 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6 to improve continuity of care among rural and tribal communities. Their goals are to 1) conduct a needs assessment within the community to understand the availability of existing lactation spaces, barriers to breastfeeding, and ways in which breastfeeding can be supported, 2) pilot a standardized breastfeeding data collection method, 3) increase by 1 the number of Ho-Chuck Nation members certified in doula and/or Indigenous Breastfeeding services, 4) develop a multi-media, culturally appropriate breastfeeding campaign featuring breastfeeding “success stories” submitted by community members, 5) increase by 1 the number of local businesses that provide designated lactation space(s), 6) develop and disseminate a standardized breastfeeding care plan with local families utilizing motivational interviewing principles.