Eleventh International Conference on Health, Wellness & Society

Abstract

Using the Black Feminist Health Science Studies (BFHSS) (Bailey & Peoples, 2017) and Reproductive Justice (RJ) frameworks (Ross & Solinger, 2017; Ross et al.), this study closely examines the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI), a global intervention initially rolled out by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in 1991. The BFHI is aimed at providing health education to support birthing parents in “successfully initiating and continuing breastfeeding” and incentives to hospitals that successfully implement the program. An Intersectionality Based Policy Analysis (IBPA) methodological approach (Hankivsky et al., 2014) is employed in order to examine the BFHI in the context of American social welfare policies (e.g., Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) and highlight the particular impacts on the experience and potential trajectories of birthing parents (and thus, of families) with intersecting positionalities, specifically Black birthing parents in the U.S. given the particular cumulative risks they face (e.g., Black maternal health crisis). The results underscore the importance in employing an intersectional analytic lens and methods and in the development and implementation of culturally-relevant health care policies and practices that improve health outcomes as well as birthing and parenting experiences for Black people.