Southwell is celebrating National Breastfeeding Awareness Month this August and World Breastfeeding Week August 1-7. Word Breastfeeding Week is organized every year by the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action (WABA), a global network that aims to protect, promote, and support breastfeeding around the world.
Southwell is joining in with this mission of protecting, promoting, and supporting breastfeeding here in South Georgia. Southwell has long recognized the importance of breastfeeding, which is why babies “room in” with their mother at Tift Regional Medical Center and why TRMC is recognized as a Baby Friendly hospital. Southwell also has lactation consultants at TRMC and a lactation consultant at Affinity Pediatrics in Tifton.
“We promote breastfeeding, when it’s possible, it has many benefits for mom and baby,” said Hilary Midler, Certified Nurse Midwife with Affinity Physicians for Women. “Research shows that it decreases the risk of mothers developing breast cancer, ovarian cancer, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease. Breastfed babies have some immunities against diseases as well as lower risks of asthma, obesity, type 1 diabetes, and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).”
“Breastfeeding is not always easy,” said Kelly Grummer-Smith, MSN, FNP-C, IBCLC with Affinity Pediatrics in Tifton. “With support from providers, nurses, and lactation consultants at Southwell, we can assist breastfeeding mothers succeed and overcome most breastfeeding concerns. Affinity Pediatrics offer Lactation specific appointments for all breastfeeding mothers in our community.”
For more information, visit mysouthwell.com/pediatrics. To schedule a consultation with Grummer-Smith, call 229-353-7337.
