Infant Feeding Services
Pregnancy
All women should have a conversation with their midwife in pregnancy about developing a close and loving relationship with their baby, responding to baby, the value of breastmilk and their feeding choices.
Infant Feeding Workshop – the infant feeding team and NCT run a weekly 2 hour infant feeding workshop to discuss responding to and feeding your baby, with a focus on getting feeding off to a good start. Face to face and online classes are both available. If you would like to book a place call 01244 363646 or email.
Home visit – if you would like to discuss your individual feeding choices one to one, our community maternity support workers can come and visit you at home. Speak to your midwife if you would like a visit.
Infant Feeding Team Referral – Families who anticipate a more challenging feeding journey or who require additional support can be referred to the infant feeding team in pregnancy for specialist advice. We welcome referrals for the following:
- Previous feeding difficulties
- Previous breast surgery
- Diagnosed congenital abnormalities e.g cleft palette.
- Hormonal / endocrine issues, e.g Polycystic ovary Syndrome or Prolactinoma
- BMI >40
- Taking medications which may impact breastfeeding.
Referrals can be made to the Infant Feeding Team by any health care professional.
Antenatal Colostrum Harvesting
Colostrum harvesting is when the first milk (colostrum) is hand expressed from the breast during pregnancy (starting at around 37 weeks pregnant) and frozen for use after birth. Research shows that those who collect colostrum in pregnancy are more confident and better prepared to breastfeed their babies. Colostrum contains antibodies, immunoglobulins and hormones which promote gut growth, as well as being the perfect nutrition for your baby. It is concentrated so only produced in small quantities. Colostrum harvesting kits are available from your community midwife, the day unit, antenatal clinic, and the infant feeding team. We advise using the colostrum syringes provided by COCH. If you use colostrum syringes purchased elsewhere, we will transfer your colostrum to our syringes before giving to baby when in hospital. If you give your colostrum to baby at home always ensure the cap is removed before administration, as it is a choking hazard. The infant feeding team also run weekly colostrum harvesting drop in sessions. Please call 01244 363646 to book a place. Colostrum harvesting is not suitable for everyone so please always check with your midwife that you can harvest your colostrum.
After Birth
Early Feeding Support – The infant feeding team are available everyday to offer early feeding support, ensuring feeding gets off to a good start. The team can visit you on labour ward or Cestrian ward and offer telephone support once discharged from hospital.
Home Visit – A community maternity support worker can visit you at home to offer ongoing feeding support. Speak to your midwife to arrange.
Breast Pump Hire – The feeding team can provide Ardo breast pumps free of charge for one month to families requiring feeding support or following individualised feeding plans. Speak to your midwife or call the infant feeding team on 01244 365401 for more information.
Specialist Infant Feeding Clinic – Families experiencing ongoing feeding difficulties or having a difficult feeding journey can be referred to our specialist clinic for advice and individualised support. The clinic reviews families from birth to 16 weeks of age. We welcome referral for the following:
- Tongue Tie
- Latching issues / ineffective milk transfer
- Ongoing painful feeding
- Recurrent mastitis
- Low milk supply
- Slow weight gain / faltering growth
Referrals can be made to the Infant Feeding Team by any health care professional.
Feeding your baby
The Countess of Chester Hospital Maternity service is UNICEF Baby Friendly Stage 3 accredited. This accreditation indicates that we meet best practice standards to support feeding your baby and close parent-infant relationships. We want to ensure that all parents feel able to make informed decisions about feeding their babies and are supported and encouraged in their chosen feeding method.
Our Infant Feeding Padlet has lots of information, resources and links to support groups to help you through your feeding journey.
Head back to our infant feeding page for further information and resources.