Description
Lactation spaces have been offered in several different settings. In Cambodia, “Labor Law Article 186 states that enterprises with at least 100 women are required to provide day-care centers or pay child-care fees, provide one hour of paid time off for breastfeeding mothers, and provide nursing rooms at or near the workplace”. In Canada, some residency placements in McMaster University’s family residency program provide access to lactation facilities, including private spaces and refrigerators.
In the US, Harvard University and the University of Washington offer lactation rooms for faculty member, staff, and student use. Supported by the overall Office of Work/Life, Harvard has 20 lactation rooms across the university’s campuses and schools, including nine on the medical campus, while the University of Washington has 14 private lactation stations across the university. At both universities, nursing mothers must register and/or undergo an orientation in order to use the rooms, which contain hospital-grade pumps and, in most cases, refrigerators. Nursing mothers must also provide their own accessory kits to use with the provided pumps.
Lactation spaces have also been documented in middle and secondary schools. In Botswana, the UNICEF-funded Diphalana Initiative, established in 1996, created a flexible learning pilot program at the Pekenene School to enable pregnant students to continue their education. The school has a child care facility for babies up to four months old. During class breaks, student mothers are able to go and breastfeed their child. The initiative provides diapers and milk.
Implementation lessons learned
Lactation breaks and spaces should be implemented together. In addition, program planners should anticipate resistance in their intervention designs and engage the community to create buy-in.
Example
Harvard University’s lactation rooms
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