"Breastfeeding Facilities"

Dear capellazk84,

My name is Leigh and I am the Patient Experience Facilitator in the Northern Trust. Apologies for the delay in my response, but please rest assured that I have been working away on this in the background.

May I apologise for the poor experience you received, and as a mum who breastfed my children, I can understand the anger and shock that you speak of.

As a Trust we are committed to promoting and normalising breastfeeding within our premises. I am sad to hear that on this occasion, we failed to do this and again I apologise.

I am currently liaising with my seniors in ED and also the Trust Breastfeeding Coordinators and will come back to you soon with an update on the progress being made in relation to your experience.

If you would like to contact me directly to discuss this further, please do so at Leigh.Morgan@northerntrust.hscni.net

Many thanks for taking the time to feedback on our services.

Best Wishes,

Leigh

Dear capellazk84,

Following on from my previous response, I wanted to let you know that in collaboration with the Trust Breastfeeding Coordinators and our Communications Team we have developed an awareness poster and an article on our Trust Intranet page to raise awareness amongst staff about our commitment to normalising breastfeeding and supporting mothers by providing them with a quiet, private area to feed their baby if requested. The article reads:-

Team North are Committed to Normalising Breastfeeding

The Northern Trust believes that breastfeeding is the healthiest way for a woman to feed her baby and recognises the important health benefits for mother and baby. We want to ensure that mothers who wish to breastfeed in Northern Trust premises are supported to do so.

In order to normalise breastfeeding we encourage mothers to breastfeed their baby in public areas if they so wish. However, not every mother feels comfortable to do this. Staff should ensure mothers are offered a quiet, private area to feed their baby. This can be as simple as providing a comfy chair and a screen to provide privacy.

Please ensure that this information is disseminated widely throughout your wards and departments to raise awareness amongst all staff. A breastfeeding poster can be printed and laminated following IPC guidelines and displayed within your department.

The poster is as below;

Thank you again for bringing this to our attention, and again I apologise for your experience that day.

Best Wishes,

Leigh