From the Department of Nutrition for Health and Development (NHD): In spite of clear messages on the importance and advantages of breastfeeding, promotion and sales of breast-milk substitutes, such as infant formula, follow-up formula and other products intended to partially …

Join me in congratulating Christus Spohn Hospital Beeville as they have just earned their Texas Ten Step program designation. Dolly Dickson, RN Director and Ruth Rowe, RN, Clinical Coordinator and their team have worked very hard to implement the required changes …

Join me in congratulating Harlingen Medical Center as the newest Texas Ten Step designated facility! Ursula Villarreal, RN, Director of Women’s Services and her team in the Valley have been working very hard to assess and improve their practices with the …

Congratulations to William Beaumont Army Medical Center, El Paso and CHI-St. Luke’s Health Brazosport, Lake Jackson hospitals as they have recently earned the Texas Ten Step designation! Welcome and kudos to all your staff for working so hard to improve …

Join me in welcoming the following newly designated Texas Ten Step facilities- our membership is steadily climbing at 125! Shannon Medical Center- San Angelo Baylor Scott & White Medical Center- White Rock Congratulations to these teams which have worked very …

Join me in congratulating Misty Whoolery-Pratt and the team at Rolling Plains Memorial Hospital in Sweetwater, Texas as they have just earned the Texas Ten Step designation! The RPMH team is also participating in the Texas Breastfeeding Learning Collaborative and …

Join me in welcoming the team from Paris Regional Medical Center as they have recently earned the Texas Ten Step designation! Kendra Waldroup and her team have worked very hard over the last 2 years to make major changes in …

A big welcome to the team at The Hospitals of Providence- Sierra Campus in El Paso as they have just earned the Texas Ten Step designation! Lisa Franco and her team have worked very hard to get all their supporting …

Communication and Optimal Resolution (CANDOR) is a process that health care institutions and practitioners can use to respond in a timely, thorough, and just way when unexpected events cause patient harm. This AHRQ toolkit, based on the CANDOR process, is intended to …

It’s been a busy day in the program as we welcome two new birthing hospitals, Edinburg Regional Medical Center and Houston Methodist Willowbrook hospital! These facilities have worked very hard to get all the application components in place and have …

Join me in welcoming Providence Memorial Hospital in El Paso as they have recently earned the Texas Ten Step program (TTS) designation! Danette Castillo, RN Breastfeeding Educator and her team have been working very hard to ensure that mothers and …

Join me in welcoming Doctors Hospital of Laredo as the 114th Texas Ten Step facility! Maria Avila, RN, IBCLC and her team have been working hard to earn the designation and have joined a host of other Texas facilities on …

Join me in congratulating our newest Texas Ten Step designated facility, Christus Spohn Hospital in Alice! Congratulations to Dolly Dickson, Nurse Manager and all her team for their hard work over the last few years to complete the application. The …

This training module is for health care professionals, health care administrators, and students interested in protecting, supporting, and promoting breastfeeding in accordance with the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative and Texas Ten Step Program. The Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding Module …

The TTS program is proud to announce that Charlotte Jackson, Director of Women’s Services and her team at Houston Northwest Medical Center has earned the Texas Ten Step program designation! Congratulations team on all your hard work!

A big hoorah for Sue Scott-Knight, RN, IBCLC and her entire team at Lake Pointe Medical Center for becoming our latest Texas Ten Step designated hospital! Stop by and visit them if you are in the area or check out …

Join me in welcoming Avis Harris-Caldwell, Perinatal Educator and her team at Central Texas Medical Center as our newest Texas Ten Step designated facility! Thank you for your hard work and dedication to the mothers and infants in Texas!

Join me in congratulating the staff at Texas Health Presbyterian Dallas as they now are Texas’ 12th Baby Friendly designated facility! Nuala Murphy, RN, IBCLC, Nursing Supervisor-Lactation Services and team a big THANK YOU for all your hard work and …

Join me in congratulating the staff at University Medical Center of El Paso as they are now our state’s 11th Baby Friendly designated facility! Deborah Eganhouse, Women’s Director and TTS contact Loretta Manriquez, RN, IBCLC, a big THANK YOU for …

Texas has gained TWO more Baby Friendly designated hospitals! Methodist Dallas Medical Center and Children’s Memorial Hermann hospital in Houston were recently designated which now makes 10 in total for our great state! Mothers and babies across the state now …

Join me in welcoming Providence Health Center in Waco as our newest Texas Ten Step facility! Emilie Cunningham and her team have worked very hard to make this designation happen as part of their work in the Texas Ten Step …

Congratulations to our newest Texas Ten Step designated facility, Houston Methodist San Jacinto Hospital in Baytown! Penny Wade, BSN, RN, IBCLC and her team have worked very hard this year to make this designation happen. The facility is one of …

Join me in welcoming our newest Texas Ten Step facility, the Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center in Fort Hood! Tara Haberl and her team have been working very hard to complete the application, changing processes and are well on …

Texas now has its 8th Baby Friendly designated hospital~ and of course keeping aligned with the saying that “everything’s bigger in Texas”, currently they earn the distinguished honor of being the largest BF designated hospital in the nation! Congratulations to …

Join me in welcoming our newest Texas Ten Step facility, West Houston Medical Center! Congratulations to Lisa Greer, Director of Women’s Services and her team for working so diligently to accomplish this goal- way to go!!

Another addition to the Texas Ten Step program this week- Welcome, Mission Regional Medical Center! A big congratulations to this facility down south that joins as our 108th facility- also in the first phase of the Baby Friendly Pathway! Way …

Join me in welcoming our latest TTS facility, Covenant Health in Lubbock! Rebecca Meador and her team have worked hard to earn the Texas Ten Step designation and join a growing number of birthing facilities in our state that have …

We’ve added another facility! Join me in welcoming the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston to the Texas Ten Step family. With almost 6,000 births per year, this facility is impacting the mothers and babies in their community in …

Yes, that’s right! We’ve added another Texas Ten Step designated facility to our list. Coming in at 108, Harris Health System- LBJ Hospital in Houston is now our newest member. Congratulations to Maria D’Souza, DON and all the staff on …

Members of the Institure for Healthcare Improvement’s Perinatal Improvement Community hosted a FREE call in January 2014 about Venous Thromboembolism (VTE) safety recommendations targeting maternal patients. Listen to this call’s recording here Follow along with the call’s slides here Review the …

The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine Protocol #1 Hypoglycemia in Breastfeeding Medicine Volume 9, Number 4, 2014 has been released. The previous version was released in 2006. The protocol is authored by Nancy Wight MD, IBCLC, FABM and Kathleen Marinelli MD, IBCLC, …

Join me in welcoming Cedar Park Regional Medical Center as the 107th Texas Ten Step facility! Thank you for all your hard work and continued support of breastfeeding mothers and babies in Texas!

Save the date for the annual Infant Health Summit hosted by the Tarrant County Infant Health Network. Please feel free to share and invite your staff and perinatal networks. Any questions should be addressed to Ann Salyer-Caldwell at ASalyer-Caldwell@TarrantCounty.com.  Registration …

  The National Initiative for Children’s Healthcare Quality (NICHQ) has taken its years of experience in helping hospitals improve maternity care practices to support breastfeeding and packaged the key strategies into a series of virtual coaching programs for healthcare professionals. The …

Join me in welcoming the Texas Children’s Hospital Pavilion for Women as our 105th Texas Ten Step designated facility! Congratulations on all your hard work and dedication to breastfeeding mothers and infants in this great state.

Please join us for an exciting webinar, “Management of Common Breastfeeding Concerns,” sponsored by The Women’s Health and Public Health/Community Nutrition Dietetic Practice Groups. One continuing professional education (CPEU) credit has been approved. This webinar will be recorded and the …

Happy New Year! The TTS Program would like to announce recent updates to our website to better ease your navigation and use of resources on the site. Included is a new look to our TTS directory and Star Achiever Initiative pages. Additionally, two new widget boxes have been …

The HHS Administration for Children and Families, Office of Human Services Emergency Preparedness and Response has published a new Infant Feeding During Disasters infographic. The infographic highlights why breastfeeding matters during disasters, barriers to breastfeeding during a disaster, benefits of …

The Texas Ten Step Star Achiever Breastfeeding Learning Collaborative- Cohort B applications are now open! If  you want to learn more about this exciting opportunity for birthing facilities in Texas and watch the recruitment video, click HERE.  

Attention health care providers- The Texas Ten Step program is getting ready to release the beta version of DSHS-WIC’s newest mobile app, “The Health Care Provider’s Guide to Breastfeeding” for Android phones. We’d like to invite health care personnel who …

A few new resource links have been added to TTS.org that I wanted to notify you of: Regional Reports for Texas Health Service Regions 1-11 of Any/ Exclusive Breastfeeding Rates on Day 2 (in-hospital) Impact of Incremental Change Table- use …

A quick share of the NICHQ news, our collaborative partner for the Star Achiever Learning Collaborative. Great information to share with staff! https://www.cvent.com/Pub/eMarketing/Pages/WebEmail.aspx?emstub=d07a455a-032d-4194-b0bf-8259826b7d77  

A big thank you to our very own DSHS-WIC breastfeeding trainer, Marguerite Kelly for putting together this list of upcoming breastfeeding conferences. Enjoy!

Hospitals around the country are purging pacifiers as they work toward creating environments that better support breastfeeding. Read how two hospitals were able to successfully toss the artificial teats.

A revised TTS material that is now available on the WIC catalog. TTS- designated facilities can place their order using their ID/Password, non- designated users can print via the PDF. The one page flyer has English on one side and Spanish on the …

The event will be held at the Tarrant County Medical Society on Sunday evening from 5-9pm.  Local sponsors include Healthy Tarrant County Collaboration (HTCC) and the Tarrant County Chapter of the Texas Academy of Family Physicians.  This 3 hour CME …

I’m literally dancing in my cube-can you hear my woo-hoo’s across this great state?  Actually, we are at 101! We now have one hundred and one designated facilities in Texas and we couldn’t be more proud of each of your facility’s efforts …

Promotional item- Hospitals and birthing centers can help promote exclusive breastfeeding by awarding the “VIP Award” to mothers who have exclusively breastfed their infants during the hospital stay. The promotional certificate supports the American Academy of Pediatrics recommendation that mothers exclusively breastfeed …

The Rio Grande Valley Breastfeeding Coalition is having a conference on August, 6, 2013, in Weslaco entitled: Helping Mothers to Achieve Breastfeeding Success.  This conference will provide 5.5 hours of continuing education credits and will feature a presentation on implementing …

The event will be held at the Tarrant County Medical Society on Sunday evening from 5-9pm.  Local sponsors include Healthy Tarrant County Collaboration (HTCC) and the Tarrant County Chapter of the Texas Academy of Family Physicians.  This 3 hour CME …

Denton Regional Medical Center has received the Texas Ten Step program designation and joins as our 99th TTS member! Congratulations to Liz Rock, RN, BSN and her staff for all their hard work in completing the application. Which facility will be 100??????????????????????

Longtime breastfeeding support advocate, Pamela Berens, MD, is helping Texas DSHS, WIC and NICHQ to lead the cause. Read more HERE about the Texas Ten Step Star Achiever Collaborative

The WIC online catalog now has several new and updated breastfeeding resource materials available. Texas Ten Step designated facilities have access through their online login to order directly, but all are welcome to print from the PDF file in the “browse” mode. If you …

An additional resource has been added to Step 6 of the Resources for Health Care Providers page on the Texas Ten Step website. WIC Publication: Making Every Ounce Count: How to Give the Best When Mom is Away is available through the …

Another Texas birthing facility has been added to the Texas Ten Step designation family. Welcome Guadalupe Regional Medical Center in Seguin- our total now stands at 97! We are steadily creeping up to that 100 mark. Way to go Shawna …

Good news travels in pairs as Cypress Fairbanks Medical Center has also joined the Give the Bag the Boot group of facilities in Texas!! Join the TTS program in congratulating this facility in this effort and remember to get listed on www.banthebags.org! Way …

Exciting news out of San Antonio as FIVE facilities in the Baptist Health System have officially terminated the use of the discharge breastmilk substitute (formula) bag given to new mothers! This achievement is no small feat- these facilities have further established their committment to improving the …

A new download-able PDF file has been added both to TTS.org under the Marketing Breastfeeding tab and the Texas WIC online catalog: DSHS-Moving Birthing Facilities toward Recommended Practices in Infant Nutrition and Care. This info-graphic can be utilized by breastfeeding advocates, …

The WKKF released a powerful new video entitled “Growing a First Food Movement—Coming Together in Support of Breastfeeding at their inaugural First Food Forum last week. Tracy Erickson, IBCLC and the Texas WIC Breastfeeding Coordinator presented information on the Every Ounce Counts campaign …

The USBC (United States Breastfeeding Committee) and the CDC held a webinar discussing the mPINC survey and how to use the data to educate and inform hospital staff, physicians and other stakeholders. The link below is to the recorded webinar …

Hand expression is an invaluable tool for all mothers to learn in the early days and weeks of breastfeeding. It is especially helpful to treat engorgement which some mothers face within the first few days of milk production or for those mothers …

The Texas Ten Step program was highlighted this month in Advance for Nurses, an online and print publication. Click HERE to view the article!

The Hospital Breastfeeding Toolkit is a set of resources and tools for maternity hospitals working on breastfeeding quality improvement projects and pursuing implementation of the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative’s “Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding.”Developed by HealthConnect One, this toolkit reflects lessons …

The National Initiative for Children’s Healthcare Quality (NICHQ) and DSHS have announced the 20 hospitals selected for the first of three Cohorts to participate in the Texas Ten Step Star Achiever Breastfeeding Learning Collaborative. For more information, see NICHQs press …

Congratulations to the Medical Center of Lewisville- they join the 95 other Texas designated facilities that have made addressing the Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding a priority. Way to go!

The International Lactation Consultant Association (ILCA) will host a free webinar,  Developing a Successful Hospital Lactation Program, on January 10th at 6pm EST. Presented by Rebecca Mannel, BS, IBCLC, FILCA, the presentation will describe key elements in developing and maintaining …

The Joint Commission today announced that it will expand performance measurement requirements for accredited general medical/surgical hospitals from four to six core measure sets. The additional requirements, which are part of The Joint Commission’s ORYX® performance measurement initiative to stimulate …

Congratulations Texas Health Presbyterian Rockwall on their 2012 Texas Ten Step facility designation! There are now 95 designated facilities and counting- reaching for triple digits by the end of the year. Do you know of a non-TTS designated facility in …

  If you or your organization is interested in a breastfeeding promotion project, order this window cling (also available in Spanish) along with our flyer to display in local hotspots/ businesses. Encourage your community to show their support for breastfeeding …

Someday Starts Now is the public campaign of the Healthy Texas Babies Initiative, led by Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS). The program’s goal is to reduce infant mortality in Texas. With support from local communities, health care providers …

Two online breastfeeding training resources:  Virginia Department of Health and University of Virginia  Breastfeeding CME  The CME site has had thousands of participants to date from all over the world and is utilized by hospitals to fulfill breastfeeding education required for Baby …

Presented by an experienced postpartum doula/CBE, this webinar will help other educators sort through the current newborn care techniques and provide teaching tips that will help parents feel competent and confident as they welcome their new babies. Click HERE to …

The Texas Ten Step Star Achiever Breastfeeding Learning Collaborative: An Initiative to Improve Infant Nutrition and Care is an initiative of the Texas Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program, the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) and the National …

Another Texas birthing facility has been added to the DSHS program which now totals 94. Congratulations Trinity Mother Frances hospital in Tyler and thank you for your commitment to supporting breastfeeding mothers and infants in Texas!

The Texas WIC News is published every other month by the Department of State Health Services, PO Box 149347, Austin, TX 78714-9347. Subscriptions are free. Issues can be viewed in pdf format on this Web page. Requests for a subscription …

A compelling video featured on the Lactation Matters blog highlighting the importance of donor breastmilk for the most fragile of infants, Premature and MicroPreemie’s: http://youtu.be/–84g_uIuhE For more information on your local Milk Bank: https://www.hmbana.org/

This is a recent post from Dr. Jane Heinig out of UC Davis in California in which she provides tips on how to be a good visitor to mothers of new infants. Her blog focuses on infant feeding and other infant …

If you are a Texas birthing facility that has removed all breastmilk substitute sponsored discharge bags from your facility, contact me at: texastenstep@dshs.state.tx.us For more information on this national initiative along with resources for how to get started, visit: http://www.banthebags.org  

RSVP to Join the Healthy Texas Babies Webinar Please join the Texas Department of State Health Services for a webinar on October 26, 2012, at 3:00 p.m. CDT to learn about the Healthy Texas Babies initiative and the tools that …