Infant Feeding Specialist - Greenwich 0-4 Service

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Planning and Organising

·        Working with Locality Lead and Infant Feeding Lead, ensure the ongoing maintenance of the UNICEF BFI standards in community settings.

·        Work with Locality Lead and Infant Feeding Lead to develop and promote standardised evidence-based professional practice in relation to infant feeding across the Greenwich 0-4 Children’s Public Health Service

·        Chair the Greenwich 0-4 Infant feeding working group, planning meetings including preparation of agendas, taking notes and ensuring timely completion of relevant actions.

·        To organise available resources to meet local/national targets and UNICEF BFI criteria, re-prioritising as necessary in response to evolving need.

·        Effectively manage own time and prioritise workload in order to achieve agreed objectives and targets.

·        In conjunction with Locality Lead and Infant Feeding Lead, regularly review progress towards agreed work objectives, providing written and verbal reports as required

Clinical

·        Maintain own clinical skills and practice by keeping up to date with current evidence-base and providing specialist advice and support to women who are experiencing feeding problems e.g. tongue tie; mastitis, poor weight gain.

·        Promote and support best practice standards across all local initiatives and challenge ineffective practice as necessary with the support of the team leaders.

·        To act as a key resource for providing clinical support to all relevant staff on infant feeding issues locally

Education and Training

·         With support from Locality Lead, Infant Feeding Lead and Professional Development Lead, design and deliver training in infant feeding and evaluate the effectiveness of training delivered.

·        To work in conjunction with Professional Development Lead, Infant Feeding Lead and Locality Leads to deliver breastfeeding management training to all relevant staff members.

·        Develop a training curriculum that incorporates best practice guidelines and promotes motivational approaches such as use of ‘ante-natal’ and ‘post-natal’ conversations

·        To work with the Professional Development Lead and Locality Leads to develop mechanisms for implementing, monitoring and managing clinical supervised practice amongst all relevant staff members including clinical supervision for staff supporting breastfeeding drop-in groups.

·        To provide ongoing regular training updates for staff as necessary, to include practical skills updates.

Service Development

·        To support the development and sustainability of local initiatives that encourage initiation and continuation of breastfeeding in the community with special emphasis on areas where breastfeeding rates are currently low.

·        Participate in the development of local pathways e.g. tongue tie

·        Participate in reviewing and updating the Greenwich 0-4 Breast Feeding Policy and Infant feeding  resources

·        Participate in work to embed Baby Friendly principles within wider service delivery e.g. antenatal pathway.

Research and Audit/Clinical Governance

·        To ensure implementation of regular audit to determine baseline and assess progress toward/maintenance of BFI Standards.

·        Evaluate client satisfaction at the breast feeding drop in clinics.

·        To establish and implement effective methods of postnatal infant feeding data collection to inform national/local targets and future practice.

·        Work with Locality Leads and Infant Feeding Lead to interpret key documents and research papers on infant nutrition into local action, ensuring good communications to all relevant staff.

·        To act as a key resource for providing support to all relevant staff on infant feeding issues locally.

·        To participate in research as necessary.

·        To work in accordance with Professional Code of Conduct and Bromley Healthcare Policy documents.

·        To access Clinical Supervision.

Partnership working

·        To demonstrate partnership working across organisational and professional boundaries to promote a seamless care pathway through pregnancy, postnatal period and early years.

·        Represent BHC on the Midwifery Services Liaison Committee with line manager

·        Membership of the London Infant Feeding Network

·        To work closely with key partners to promote a positive attitude to breastfeeding across the borough, this includes local baby cafes and children and family centres.

To work closely with all neighbouring Maternity Services to ensure a co-ordinated approach to UNIFEF BFI is adopted.