Value Added Abstract
Marwa Alkotamy
Abstract
Early initiation of breast feeding is a key factor of neurodevelopment of preterm babies and one of the measures of NNAP is to assess if babies born less than 32 weeks gestational age receive their mother’s milk at day 14 of life and at discharge. Objectives: · To assess rates of initiation and maintenance of breastfeeding · To assess average time taken to achieve full feeds · To develop an action plan around improving our breastfeeding experience for our babies Method: Prospective study of babies born less than 34 weeks gestation over period of four months. Proforma was network based and data was collected via Badger network. Results: Total of 70 babies between 25+5 to 33+5 weeks included. 39 babies were born via caesarean section and 31 born via NVD with 18 multiple births. All babies whom mothers wanted to breast feed received breast milk as the first feed. 86% of all babies received breast milk at some point and 54% of them received breast milk within 48 hours of birth. The main reason for delaying breast feeding was non-availability of mother’s milk. Breast feeding rates was reduced in babies delivered via cesearean section and gradually declined during admission. Conclusion: There is need to offer breastfeeding support throughout the admission to mothers to ensure sustainability. An expression checklist was designed towards achieving this. Biography: