Patna: All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Patna, in collaboration with the Breastfeeding Promotion Network of India (BPNI), Delhi, has launched a four-day Training of Trainers (ToT) programme to strengthen breastfeeding support across Bihar.
Organised by the Department of Pediatrics at AIIMS Patna from September 7 to 10, the programme focuses on the World Health Organization’s Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding. It aims to create skilled master trainers who can later train doctors, nurses and auxiliary nurse midwives (ANMs) across the state.
Focus on Practical Breastfeeding Support
The training programme was inaugurated on September 7 through a lamp-lighting ceremony attended by Prof. (Brig.) Dr Raju Agarwal, Executive Director and CEO of AIIMS Patna; Prof. Dr Prashant Kumar Singh, Medical Superintendent; Dr K. Kesavulu, Course Director and BPNI Training Coordinator; the Chief Nursing Officer and faculty members.
Agarwal highlighted the importance of breastfeeding for newborn and child health and said AIIMS Patna was committed to strengthening breastfeeding practices and developing the hospital as a Baby-Friendly Hospital.
Singh stressed the need to improve early initiation and exclusive breastfeeding. He noted that skilled counselling has helped improve exclusive breastfeeding rates and said the current programme would give healthcare providers practical and hands-on training.
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Bihar Targets Better Early Breastfeeding
According to Kesavulu, the current rate of early initiation of breastfeeding in Bihar stands at around 51%. The training programme aims to strengthen breastfeeding practices and work towards universal early initiation.
The training is being conducted by National Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) Trainers Dr Sunita Katyayan from Ranchi and Manish Kumar from Patna.
Dipti Das, Tutor at the College of Nursing, AIIMS Patna, is serving as the Local Course Coordinator. The programme also has support from the Neonatology and Lactation Counselling teams at AIIMS Patna.
21 Healthcare Providers Join Four-Day Programme
Around 21 maternity healthcare providers from different cadres at AIIMS Patna are participating in the training. The participants include doctors, nursing tutors and nursing officers.
The programme is designed to build a pool of trained professionals who can pass on their knowledge to other healthcare workers. This could help create a more sustainable workforce for breastfeeding counselling and support across Bihar.
The training also seeks to strengthen Baby-Friendly Hospital practices by improving the quality and consistency of support available to mothers during the maternity and postnatal period.
Supporting Mothers with Skilled and Compassionate Care
AIIMS Patna and BPNI aim to strengthen breastfeeding support by providing mothers with timely, skilled and compassionate counselling. The master-trainer model will help train doctors, nurses and ANMs across Bihar.
With early breastfeeding initiation at around 51%, the initiative seeks to improve breastfeeding practices and strengthen maternal and newborn care through better-trained healthcare professionals.
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