Breast feeding advice kits now available
5 October, 2000
The Federal Government has produced 2 comprehensive information kits designed to help advise parents about breast feeding their children both at home and in the workplace.
The Balancing Breastfeeding and Paid Employment resource kit and the Antenatal Breastfeeding Education Resource Package were launched as part of the Government's National Breastfeeding Strategy.
Breast feeding at work
Dr Ellen McIntyre from Adelaide University led the team who developed the workplace resources kit. She said: 'Statistics show that about 27 per cent of Australian women return to work within the first 12 months of their baby's life. Finding ways of combining breast feeding and paid work is likely to be an issue for these women.
'My team has produced resources for employers to support mothers continuing to breast feed once they return to paid employment. Material has also been developed for mothers to help them balance breast feeding with work.'
So far, 50,000 workplace breast feeding information kits have been distributed to workplaces around Australia.
The right advice
The antenatal breast feeding resource kit was developed by a team led by Professor Lesley Barclay, with funding from the University of Technology in Sydney. It has been distributed to antenatal educators and obstetricians around Australia.
Professor Barclay said: 'Most Australian women begin breast feeding but some do not breast feed for long enough and there are some women who do not breast feed at all.
'Too many expectant mothers still get poor advice about breast feeding, causing them to stop before they really want to.
'This resource kit is especially important as it uses the latest research on women's own experience to improve the quality of information and support women get from their antenatal educators.'
The kit includes a 30-minute video, antenatal group materials and materials for non-English speakers.
Last Reviewed: 30 May 2002
