The Global Breastfeeding Collective is creating a video highlighting the impact of skilled breastfeeding counselling on mothers’ ability to start breastfeeding, breastfeed exclusively (avoid formula), or keep breastfeeding their babies for as long as they planned or wanted to and we need your help.
Research shows that more mothers breastfeed when they receive good breastfeeding counselling at least six times in their breastfeeding journeys. Sadly, breastfeeding counselling is not available everywhere and many mothers find that the health workers they work with do not have the knowledge and skills they need to help mothers overcome common breastfeeding challenges.
We need you to help us change this by telling us your story.
What advice were you given by health workers when you sought help for breastfeeding? Did breastfeeding counselling help you? How do you think it affected your ability to breastfeed, breastfeed exclusively, or breastfeed for as long as you planned? Did it affect the advice or support you received from others? What do you wish your health workers had known? If you didn’t get breastfeeding counselling, how do you think it would have helped you?
We want to make a video to show governments and other health policy makers how receiving breastfeeding counselling helps families and what happens when it is not provided. We want to inspire governments and health services to provide good breastfeeding counselling to every family for the first two years of their children’s lives.
We will edit the video submissions and bring them together to tell a global story about why breastfeeding counselling is important to families all around the world. We will use the video in a webinar and on social media.
You can help by recording a short video (no more than 2 minutes) telling us about your experience of breastfeeding counselling. We’ve created a list of questions to help you tell us your story.
Questions to help tell your story
Please say the following:
My name is [first name/given name] and I live in [country name].
Please tell us your story. Please include these details:
Why did you need skilled breastfeeding care? What challenges were you experiencing?
If you received care:
Who helped you? (For example, your midwife, a peer supporter, an IBCLC)
How many times did you have breastfeeding counselling?
Where did you have breastfeeding counselling? (For example, at a health care facility, at your home, in the community)
How did receiving/not receiving breastfeeding counselling impact your ability to breastfeed?
Why was breastfeeding counselling important to you?
How did breastfeeding counselling make you feel? OR How did you feel when you couldn’t access breastfeeding counselling?
Please tell us in one word:
What did having skilled breastfeeding counselling mean to you?
How to submit your video
Please note that all participants will also need to complete a release form. You can download a copy of the release form here.
Questions? Please contact Jeanette McCulloch at the International Lactation Consultant Association (ILCA) at media@ilca.org.
Please send your video and a video release form to media@ilca.org by 25 June 2021 [EDITED TO ADD: deadline extended to 1 July]. Please also find our tips for making your own videos using a phone or tablet here.
The Global Breastfeeding Collective is a partnership of prominent international agencies, including ILCA, calling on donors, policymakers, philanthropists and civil society to increase investment in breastfeeding worldwide.
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