XL13: Infant Feeding in Emergencies: Are you ready?

Lecturer: Dr Karleen Gribble
CERPs: not offered
Cost: FREE
Access period: One week
Lecture recorded: at GOLD09
Synopsis: Emergencies can happen anywhere and infants who are not breastfed are at increased risk of illness and death regardless of the context. Emergencies destroy what is normal, leave mothers struggling to cope, and infants vulnerable to disease and death.
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Lecture Details: This year’s World Breastfeeding Week theme is “Breastfeeding a vital emergency response.” Emergencies can happen anywhere and infants who are not breastfed are at increased risk of illness and death regardless of the context. Emergencies destroy what is normal, leave mothers struggling to cope, and infants vulnerable to disease and death. Those with knowledge of the importance of breastfeeding have an important role in emergency preparedness and response; unfortunately babies and their mothers are often harmed by the inappropriate and inadequate provision of aid when an emergency occurs. The most effective way of supporting the survival of infants in emergencies is to support mothers to breastfeed. Mothers require active support and assistance breastfeed. They also require protection from harmful aid such as the untargeted distribution of infant formula and powdered milk.

Where infants cannot be breastfed an intensive package of support that includes not just infant formula but other resources like water, fuel, education and medical care is needed. Currently, infants and their mothers are often not well supported in emergencies. What can be done to improve this situation? How can this year’s World Breastfeeding Week increase the chances of infants surviving emergencies? This presentation will summarise the type of aid that protects and also the type that harms infants in emergencies. It will present examples of actions that individuals and organisations can take to protect infants and mothers in emergencies no matter where they are.

About the Lecturer: Dr Karleen Gribble - BRurSc PhD
Karleen Gribble is an adjunct research fellow in the School of Nursing at the University of Western Sydney. Her research interests include adoptive breastfeeding, long-term breastfeeding, non-nutritional aspects of breastfeeding, models of care for newly adopted post-institutionalised children and infant feeding in emergencies. Karleen speaks and publishes widely on these subjects to lay and professional audiences and is actively involved in breastfeeding advocacy at a national and international level.