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Government Activities
Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)
Office on Women's Health (OWH)
The DHHS Office of Women's Health (OWH) serves as a focal point for
women's health issues within the federal government by coordinating
efforts to eliminate disparities in women's health status and support
culturally sensitive educational programs that encourage women to take
personal responsibility for their own health and wellness. Working with a
number of public and private partners, OWH has developed an array of
breastfeeding promotional materials for specific audiences, targeting such
groups as African American women, consumers, members of health plans,
physicians, and policymakers.
Blueprint for Action on Breastfeeding
Recognizing breastfeeding as one of the most important contributors
to infant health, the Office of the U.S. Surgeon General released (on
October 2000) the first comprehensive national framework to promote
breastfeeding and optimal breastfeeding practices. The HHS Blueprint
for Action on Breastfeeding was developed by the HHS Subcommittee on
Breastfeeding, which was coordinated by the Office on Women's Health and
included health and scientific experts from 14 federal agencies and 23
health care professional organizations.
The Blueprint for Action promotes a plan for breastfeeding
based on education, training, awareness, support, and research.
Specifically, the plan lays out a framework based on the recommendation
that infants be exclusively breastfed during the first four to six
months of life, preferably for a full six months. The plan also suggests
that, ideally, breastfeeding should continue through the first year of
life. To download the full text of the document, visit http://www.4women.gov/Breastfeeding/bf.cfm?page=233.
The National Women's Health Information Center (NWHIC)
The NWHIC is the OWH clearinghouse for women's health information.
Its mission is to provide current, reliable, commercial- and cost-free
health information to women and their families. Through a comprehensive
Web site and toll-free call center, NWHIC serves the entire United
States, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Phone lines (available
in English and Spanish) are open Monday through Friday from 9:00 am to
6:00 pm, eastern time. Deaf and hearing impaired callers with TTY
equipment may call 888-220-5446. For those with Internet access, the
address is http://www.4women.gov.
A thorough NWHIC publications database provides easy access to
hundreds of documents on a wide variety of subjects, including such
topics as: children, lactation, breastfeeding, postpartum care, newborn
care, and child development.
Partnership with the African-American Breastfeeding Alliance (AABA)
After announcing the HHS Blueprint for Action on Breastfeeding,
OWH received a tremendous response from consumers, organizations, and
public health professionals concerned about the disparities in
breastfeeding rates between Caucasian and African American mothers. To
address this issue, the Office on Women's Health has partnered with AABA,
a new nonprofit organization whose proposed purpose is to inform the
African American community concerning the benefits of breastfeeding
through education, counseling, training, and advocacy.
Breastfeeding-related Updates
- In August 2001, OWH and the American Association of Health Plans (AAHP)
released a joint publication, Advancing Women's Health: Health
Plans' Innovative Programs in Breastfeeding. The publication was
distributed to 1000 health plans around the U.S.
- In July 2001, OWH released a consumer booklet entitled An Easy
Guide to Breastfeeding for African-American Women. To view the
document, visit http://www.4women.gov/owh/pub/aabreastfeeding/.
Contact information:
Address: Office on Women's Health
Department of Health and Human Services
200 Independence Avenue, SW Room 730B
Washington, DC 20201
Telephone: (202) 690-7650
Web site: http://www.4women.gov/owh/
Address: National Women's Health Information Center
8550 Arlington Blvd., Suite 300
Fairfax, VA 22031
Telephone: 800-994-WOMAN (800-994-9662)
1-888-220-5546 for the hearing impaired
Web site: http://www.4women.gov
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