1. Building and Sustaining Community Partnerships Accessing Communities Through Community Partnerships and Peer Support

3. Coalition building

5. Content of existing programs

7. Accessing Communities through Community Partnerships Community partnerships are established alliances between people and organizations from multiple sectors, such as businesses and schools, working together to improve the conditions and outcomes of the health and well being of entire communities (Roussos & Fawcett, 2000).

8. Community Partnerships and Breastfeeding Partnerships with people, businesses and organizations that have an established goal of improving breastfeeding rates Partnerships can include businesses, community organizations and health professionals Partnerships are created to assist with Raising public awareness and educating through available resources and advertising Normalizing breastfeeding

9. Loving Support and Partnerships In 2003 WIC State agencies worked with community partners to develop strategies to address state specific barriers to breastfeeding State agencies developed implementation plans that addressed several components of a social marketing campaign: Community partnership building Public awareness Client and family education Health provider outreach http://www.nal.usda.gov/wicworks/Learning_Center/LS/2003States.pdf

10. Loving Support in AR and LA (2003) Worked with the state media office to air breastfeeding PSA’s Established regional breastfeeding coalitions Included breastfeeding information displays and held classes at Health and Baby Fairs Wrote newspaper articles on breastfeeding topics Established partnerships with community-based organizations such as Head Start, Childcare and faith-based groups

11. Normalizing Breastfeeding Normalizing breastfeeding within communities helps make breastfeeding a choice for women who never considered it, feel it is unattainable or embarrassing, or lack a support system at home (Shealy et al., 2005) Communities that welcome media and social marketing campaigns that support breastfeeding have more positive attitudes and perceptions about breastfeeding, and higher breastfeeding initiation and duration rates (Shealy et al., 2005)

12. “Babies Were Born to Be Breastfed”A Social Marketing Campaign In June 2004, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office on Women's Health teamed up with the Ad Council to launch a national campaign which encouraged first time mothers to breastfeed exclusively for six months Their target audience was the general population http://www.womenshealth.gov/breastfeeding/government-programs/national-breastfeeding-campaign/adcouncil/#a

16. Results from “Babies Were Born to be Breastfed” 38% of adults said they had heard, seen or read something about breastfeeding Increase from 24% in 2004 64% of people felt that breastfeeding was the best way to feed (up from 54% in 2004 and 39% in 2003) 59% of women who had seen the ads reported that they felt comfortable breastfeeding in public Versus 39% of those who had not seen the ads

17. Examples of Breastfeeding Community Partnerships in Action The WIC program in Massachusetts promotes their program by distributing information packets to pediatricians, obstetricians, family practitioners and nurse practitioners across the state http://www.nal.usda.gov/wicworks/Learning_Center/bfshowcase.pdf

18. Available Resources Chicago’s Center for Community Partnerships offers information for health related community partnerships http://www.cchsd.org/chicagohealthpartners.org/html/partnerships_index.html Wisconsin’s “Building Breastfeeding Friendly Communities” website is a collection of information designed to assist local communities in protecting, promoting and supporting breastfeeding http://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/health/Nutrition/Breastfeeding/bffriendlycomm.htm

19. Accessing Communities through Peer Support Peer Support is an extension of health-care services to include peers in the delivery of supportive interventions. Individuals with personal experience and knowledge are incorporated to complement professional health services and extend natural social networks (Shealy et al., 2005).

20. Peer Support and Breastfeeding Individual counseling or mother to mother support that includes emotional support, encouragement, and education about breastfeeding Typically provided by women who are currently breastfeeding or have done so in the past Ideally of a similar economic background as the women they support Peer counseling has been found to be a significant factor in improving both initiation and duration rates of breastfeeding (Anderson et al., 2007)

21. La Leche League In 1954, La Leche League pioneered the use of peer support for breastfeeding mothers. Today, 54 years later, it is the central focus of their organization In the 1970's, the peer counseling model turned towards low-income women in Augusta, GA Peer support is now an integral part of the breastfeeding support services provided by WIC Programs throughout the country

22. Existing Programs Peer counseling programs employ a wide range of activities including one-on-one counseling, hospital or home visits, group classes and support groups, and referrals to appropriate health and social services. Peer support represents a cost effective, culturally competent way to promote and support breastfeeding for women of varying backgrounds (Shealy et al., 2005).

23. Breastfeeding Disparities Disparities have been found in duration and exclusivity of breastfeeding among both ethnic and economic groups This proves there is a need for culturally sensitive interventions for populations in LA, MS and AR (Anderson et al., 2007)

24. PRAMS Data on Breastfeeding Disparities (2004) Prevalence of Breastfeeding by Race/Ethnicity % CI (95%) Maternal Characteristic by Race/Ethnicity http://www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/ProductsPubs/PDFs/PRAMSandBreastfeeding-08.pdf

25. Culturally Sensitive Peer Support Many studies have also demonstrated the powerful effect of peers from within the cultural group in helping women choose to initiate or continue breastfeeding This is especially true for women without previous breastfeeding experience, who are more likely to initiate breastfeeding if they receive positive messages from family and peer groups http://www.nal.usda.gov/wicworks/Learning_Center/research_brief.pdf

27. In Conclusion Raise breastfeeding rates by accessing communities through Encouraging coalitions and campaigns in the area Normalizing breastfeeding Raise breastfeeding rates by making peer support programs available that are Accessible, personable and informative Culturally sensitive

28. Works Cited Anderson AK, Damio G, Chapman DJ, Perez-Escamilla R. Differential response to an exclusive breastfeeding peer counseling intervention: the role of ethnicity. J Hum Lact. 2007;23(1):16-23. Roussos, S. T., & Fawcett, S. B. (2000). A review of collaborative partnerships as a strategy for improving community health. Annual Review of Public Health, 21, 369-402. doi:10.1146/annurev.publhealth.21.1.369 ShealyKR, Li R, Benton-Davis S, Grummer-Strawn LM. The CDC Guide to Breastfeeding Interventions. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2005: 1-51.

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