Research & Practice
Culturally Relevant Breastfeeding Support Among Childcare Providers in the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP)
In partnership with the Washington State Department of Health, this project focused on culturally relevant breastfeeding promotion in childcare environments. There are significant disparities in Washington state hidden within the 92.5% breastfeeding initiation rate; structural racism and inequities create additional barriers to breastfeeding among people of color and other historically marginalized communities, contributing to cycles of disadvantage. Childcare providers are essential for continued breastfeeding support for parents to help disrupt these patterns and support the wellbeing of families.
The Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) adopted reimbursement guidelines to motivate childcare providers to encourage breastfeeding onsite. Through collaboration with government stakeholders and community partners, we identified resource gaps and challenges faced by childcare providers in the CACFP regarding infant feeding and breastfeeding support. Major barriers faced by providers included confusion with understanding the CACFP infant meal pattern guidelines and the burden of the extensive documentation required to claim infants on the CACFP. Based on these findings, several resources for providers were created detailing information about CACFP reimbursements, breastfeeding support, and infant feeding practices. Conversations with partners were also summarized into a document for CACFP specialists with recommendations for future breastfeeding support efforts.
Some next steps could include streamlining breastfeeding information between federal assistance programs (specifically WIC and the CACFP) and more efforts to incentivize childcare providers to become breastfeeding-friendly. Strong partnerships between stakeholders are essential to continue to advocate for breastfeeding families and prioritize marginalized communities.
Materials Available
Project Type(s): MPH Practicum, PH Concentration Poster
Author(s): Sarah Perlin
Program(s): Master of Public Health, RDN Training
Year: 2021
Adviser(s):