Content includes a flexible plan of care with visits based on identified domains for both the mother (e.g., family planning, transportation, housing, and breastfeeding support), and the infant (e.g., monitoring infant growth).
One infant was admitted to intensive care for two days for respiratory support and one infant for seven days with intrauterine growth restriction and a possible fetal anomaly.
The Centre works together with communities to provide high quality ECD programmes and services including a preschool enrichment programme, family home-visiting programme focusing on access to social grants, health and nutrition, and caregiver support; and an infant and toddler support programme for caregivers of children aged 0 – 6 years.
To determine whether the Infant Behavioral Assessment and Intervention Program (IBAIP), designed to support and enhance infants' self-regulatory competence, improved developmental and neurobehavioral outcomes in very low birth weight (VLBW) infants.
Nutrition Over 8,000 pregnant and lactating women and caregivers have received counselling and support for infant and young child feeding (IYCF) through 43 UNICEF-supported mother and baby friendly spaces.
Full implementation of the Global Strategy for Infant and Young Child Feeding, including the International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes, which would help protect against commercial influences that discourage breastfeeding, and the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative and community activities, which can promote and support improved infant and young child feeding.
Goal In accordance with the Global Strategy on Infant and Young Child Feeding (WHO-UNICEF 2003), the overall goal of UNICEF's infant and young child feeding programming is to protect, promote and support optimal infant and young child feeding, in order to improve nutrition status, growth and development, health and thus the survival of infants and young children.
Action It is estimated that reaching all infants with a package of interventions to protect, promote and support optimal infant and young child feeding practices - breastfeeding and complementary feeding - can contribute to preventing 1.4 million and 600,000 child deaths respectively, or just over a fifth of the total annual child deaths.
In the Sahel, the UNICEF strategy also addresses the underlying causes of malnutrition: protect, promote and support optimal infant and young child feeding practices, provide vitamins and minerals through fortified foods and supplements, and promote access to sanitation and clean water and preventive and curative health interventions.
"The protection, promotion and support of infant and young child feeding practices are essential for improving survival and supporting the growth, health and development of children.
