Community Support for

Infant and Young Child Feeding

 National Plan of Action on IYCF
 Anchored on the Global Strategy for
Infant and Young Child Feeding

 Aims to contribute to improving nutritional

status and health of children and reduce
infant and young child mortality and
morbidity
 NPA-IYCF: Objectives
 Improve, protect and promote appropriate
IYCF practices
 Increase political commitment at different
levels
 Provide supportive environment to
implement optimal IYCF practices
 Ensure sustainability of interventions
STRATEGIES
 Policy support and standard setting
 Improve systems for effective IYCF
 Mobilize stakeholders to IYCF
 Involve families and communities

Mother-Child Friendly Settings

 Health facility
 Workplace
 Schools
 Public places
 Families/communities
 Industry
 Mother-Baby Friendly Settings
 Home and 1. Train health and nutrition
communities workers
2. Milk Code enforcement
3. Communication strategy
4. Support groups
5. Integration of IYCF in other
settings
 Model Mother-Baby Friendly Community

1. Mothers and their families practice

appropriate infant and young child
feeding
 Model Mother-Baby Friendly Community

2. There is local ordinance for:

 Milk Code Enforcement
 Setting up community support groups
 Promoting, protecting and advocating
for appropriate breastfeeding/infant
feeding
 Milk Code Enforcement
 No infant formula in markets,
supermarkets, sari sari store
 No milk companies supported
activities
 No health workers promoting infant
formula
 No posters/other related with
babyfood products in public places
 Model Mother-Baby Friendly Community

3. Health and nutrition workers & birth

attendants have knowledge of and are
able to support and promote appropriate
breastfeeding / infant feeding
 Model Mother-Baby Friendly Community

4. Counsellors/community support groups

leaders
 are active
 have strong link with the health centre
 are able to monitor, support and
encourage appropriate infant feeding from
pregnancy onwards
 What can you do to start…
1. Present the concept to
 Barangay City Council to obtain the
necessary support
 Health Center staff and other health facilities
based in the barangay
 schools, work places and other public places
in your barangay
 existing groups and organizations /partners
related with the protection, promotion and
advocacy of children’s rights
 What can you do to start…
 2. The group then develops a Plan of Action
that would:

– Clearly defines goals and objectives

– Defines target audiences
– Links with current activities/programs in your
barangay
– Identifies counseling channels
– Discusses structure and resources needed
– Analyses training and IEC needs
– Defines supervision, monitoring and evaluation
– Designs timeline
– Identifies needs in terms of funds
 What can you do to start…
3. Identify how each one of them can help in
setting up the model community (role
identification)
Training
Technical Assistance
IEC Materials
Supervision and Monitoring
Others
 1. Local Chief Executive

2. Municipal/City IYCF Team

Health Office/Nutrition Office
[MHO, MNAO, PHN, Nutritionist,
Nurse/DOHREP]

3. Barangay Chairperson/
Barangay Council

4. Barangay IYCF Team

Health Center, RHU, BHS
[Midwives, BNS, BHW]

5. IYCF Community Support

Group
[Volunteers] 15
 What can you do to start…
1. Organize Community Assembly to:
inform the community about the program
to identify pregnant women and mothers
with infant and children up to 2 years old
 What can you do to start…
2. Select BF counsellors from each purok / sitio with
the following qualifications:
• basic literacy level
• a woman with successful breastfeeding experience
• has a similar background to the women to be
counseled
• has experience in community work
• lives in the community
• is respected by the community
• can allocate and commit time
• is motivated to help other mothers
 What can you do to start…
3. Train / Orient the selected peer
counsellors to facilitate support groups
Functions of Peer Counselors (PC)

1. Identify the mothers with infant and

young children up to 2 years old and
pregnant women
2. Give counseling to target mothers in
groups or individual
3. Home visits
4. Recording and reporting
 Peer counselling methodology
1. PCs interview mothers assigned to them
(by facilitator) with 1 mother per PC
2. Meeting of PCs (to learn from other
mothers and PCs)
3. Show results of survey (from interview)
4. Discuss IYCF issues per mother
5. Advise PC on recommendations to
address IYCF issue
 Peer counselling methodology
6. PCs conducts second visit (after one
week) to the mother and conducts
counselling based on issues; makes
agreement with mother based on the
problem
7. PC returns for 3rd visit (after one week) to
mother and discuss problem; identify
motivators for mother; makes agreement
with mother on positive change
 Peer counselling methodology
8. Meeting of PCs to discuss each situation
of mother
9. PC returns for 4th visit (after one week)
to follow-up on problem; agreement with
mother on positive change
 IYCF Survey
Mother’s Age of IYCF Reasons Issues/ Agreement Motivator IYCF
name child practices for feeding Problems during 2nd of practice
practice identified visit mother (3rd visit)
…
 Example of mother with child
 Rose, mother of Jenny who is 2 months
old
 Findings of PC from interview of mother
– Mixed feeding
– Mother is working
– Mother has inadequate knowledge on
expressing breastmilk
 Second visit of PC with Rose
 PC counsels mother on expressing milk
and cup feeding
 Agrees with mother to 1 less bottle feeding
and instead give expressed milk
 Third visit of PC with Rose
 PC follows-up mother to see if she is able
to successfully express and feed by cup
 Agrees with mother to lessen bottle
feeding and increased volume of
expressed milk
 Visit continues to help mother practice
exclusive breastfeeding even while
working
 PC meetings
 Facilitator asks PCs convenient time for
regular meetings; agree on time and
venue
 Facilitators asks PCs convenient time for
visits to mothers
 Source out simple snacks (water and
boiled camote)
 PCs
 Facilitators conducts orientations on IYCF
(using the IYCF flipchart or develop own
locally suitable materials)
 Start with few PCs then recruit more
 As more mothers learn about IYCF, they
will also encourage other mothers
 PCs can use form for visits while facilitator
prepares the matrix of IYCF issues
 Makati City experience
 Pre-implementation phase
– Training of health center staff
– Training of peer counselors
 Makati City experience
 Implementation phase
– Recording and master listing of 0-11 months old
children in the area
– Assigning home visits
– Actual home visits
– Recording/documentation
– Reporting to health centers
– Referral
– Meeting with health staff
– Follow-ups
– Analysis
Present concept to Barangay
 Recruitment of PCs

 PCs also sign intent of support

Get support from Barangay
Meeting of PCs
PCs conduct survey
PC interviews mother
Meeting of PCs
Meeting of PCs- discuss survey
Facilitator assigns mother
PC second visit to mother to
counsel on problem
PC prepares report
PCs visit infant ready for
Complementary feeding
PCs visit infant ready for
Complementary feeding
PCs visit infant ready for
Complementary feeding
PCs also visit pregnant women
PCs submit report to HC
HC updates masterlist
 HC
consolidates
report
 HC
consolidates
report
Referral and one-on-one
counselling
Conduct mother’s class
Group counselling
Orientations for PCs
Final product – happy mommy and
healthy baby!