Quảng Trị Province seizes the key for investing in newborn nutrition during the first 1,000 days

A milk bank at the Quảng Trị General Hospital. — Photos courtesy of Alive & Thrive

QUẢNG TRỊ — The central Quảng Trị Province inaugurated a human milk bank on August 14 at the provincial general hospital and welcomed the second centre of excellence for breastfeeding at the Đakrông District Hospital.

These efforts have contributed to the Ministry of Health’s goal of ensuring nutrition during the first 1,000 days of life, especially for ethnic communities in Việt Nam.

Human milk delivered to the Quảng Trị General Hospital.

The newly inaugurated baby milk bank service at Quảng Trị General Hospital, in connection with the Đà Nẵng milk bank will provide pasteurised donor human milk to 500 at-risk infants each year, with a particular focus on ethnic minority children in the province.

Speaking at the centre of excellence for breastfeeding designation ceremony at the Đakrông District Hospital, Triệu Văn Bình, deputy head of the National Assembly Office of Ethnic Affairs, said: “The malnutrition rate among ethnic minority children is three times higher than the national average. I highly appreciate this approach and model, as it will bring sustainable impacts to the furthest-behind communities and should be scaled up and promoted in the future.”

Phan Xuân Nam, director of Quảng Trị General Hospital, said: “Breastfeeding is a life-saving resource for premature or ill infants, reducing the risk of infection by 19 per cent and shortening hospital stays. It is more than just nutrition, it is medicine that can significantly improve health outcomes and support recovery.”

It is estimated that nearly 250 million litres of breastmilk are lost annually in Việt Nam due to inadequate support for mothers, making it challenging for them to breastfeed confidently. This loss is valued at more than US$25 billion, according to the Mothers’ Milk Tool developed by Alive & Thrive and the Australian National University.

A mother is helped to breastfeed at Đakrông District Hospital

Roger Mathisen, Alive & Thrive East Asia Pacific regional director from FHI 360, said:  “It takes a village to support breastfeeding. Over the past decade, the rate of exclusive breastfeeding in the first six months has doubled, but it has only reached around 45 per cent. This means that half of the mothers and babies born in Việt Nam are not enabled to breastfeed exclusively.

“More effort is needed from maternity protection entitlements, families, workplaces and especially healthcare facilities, to provide mothers with the knowledge, skills and supportive environments for breastfeeding,” he said. — VNS