Stage 2: An educated workforce
Stage 2 accreditation is achieved when a service demonstrates that all staff have been educated according to their role, as described at Stage 1, and that this training has prepared staff to care for mothers and families effectively. All staff who have contact with new mothers and babies will need to be educated to allow them to implement the standards according to their role.
Standard
- Educate staff to implement the standards according to their role and the service provided.
Resources to help you meet the standards
Dedicated guidance and application forms for Stage 1 are available via the download links below.
More detailed information on how to meet the standards is in our Guide to the Baby Friendly Initiative Standards and the guidance documents for neonatal units and children’s centres.
- Our Guide for health professionals to working within the Code will give you useful advice on avoiding inappropriate promotion of breastmilk substitutes within your facility.
- Baby Friendly’s Guide to writing a training curriculum is helpful when planning the training. The practical skills review forms are designed to guide those carrying out one-to-one clinical skills sessions with staff.
- Those implementing the standards and delivering the training may find the Train the Trainer course useful. Most facilities find that staff require both classroom teaching and one to one (or small group) support to gain the clinical skills they need. All members of staff may benefit from attending a Breastfeeding and Relationship Building course.
- Using the relevant audit tool for your service will give you a clear understanding of the knowledge and skills of staff and the education needed to bring them up to the standards required.
- Guidance on antenatal and postnatal conversations give useful advice on effective communication.
When all staff have completed the education programme, and internal audit results indicate that they have achieved the required knowledge and skills, the Stage 2 assessment can take place. This involves Baby Friendly assessors visiting your facility and interviewing staff about their knowledge and skills. Please contact the Baby Friendly Initiative office to discuss the preparations to be made and to schedule an assessment date.
As part of the Stage 2 assessment you will be asked to send details of the staff on duty and you can use the staff lists template to prepare this information, and then populate the timetable for interviews once your lead assessor has confirmed the staff selected
Guidance and application forms
Maternity
Health Visiting
Children’s Centres
Useful links and next steps
Working towards and achieving Stage 2 has been the most amazing experience of my 30 years in neonatal care ... Please please encourage units to book a date, it’s amazing what can happen.
