The Use of a Medical Center-Based Outpatient Breastfeeding Support Program with Telelactation to Provide Ongoing Breastfeeding Support to a Diverse Patient Population.

Background: Patients from low-income, minoritized communities have limited access to outpatient breastfeeding support with International Board Certified Lactation Consultants (IBCLCs). Telelactation may increase access particularly when appointments can be self-scheduled. Objective: To describe a medical center-based, outpatient breastfeeding support program that includes telelactation and serves a diverse patient population. Methods and Study Design: A retrospective electronic chart review was performed for patients with in-person or telelactation visit types between April 2020 and December 2021. Impact of demographics (language, race/ethnicity, insurance) on scheduling patterns (self-scheduled versus traditionally scheduled), visit reasons, and impact of initial visit type and reason on subsequent follow-ups were determined. Feeding practice-to-feeding goal ratios were compared between initial and last visit to determine if breastfeeding goals were met. Descriptive statistics, linear regression, chi-square, and paired t-tests were performed. Results: Two thousand twenty-three patients (37.9% Spanish-speakers, 76.6% Latinx; 8.0% black/non-Latinx, 79.0% publicly insured) made 2,791 visits, of which 50.6% were for telelactation. Self-scheduling resulted in decreased no show rates (25.3% versus 42.8%, p < 0.001). Commercially insured patients had greater odds of self-scheduling versus publicly insured (adjusted odds ratio: 9.22; 95% confidence interval, CI [6.27-13.57]) with no impact of race/ethnicity or language. Reasons for visit differed slightly by initial visit type. Practice-to-feeding goal ratios increased regardless of initial visit type: telelactation visit (0.84 to 0.88 [difference 0.04; 95% CI: 0.006-0.066; p = 0.017]); and in-person visit (0.77 to 0.84 [difference 0.07; 95% CI: 0.044-0.11 p < 0.001]). Conclusions: Telelactation as part of a medical center-based outpatient breastfeeding support program is a promising modality for both initial and follow-up visits. Self-scheduling decreased no show rates.

Impact of Breastfeeding Support Services on Mothers' Breastfeeding Experiences When Provided by an MD/IBCLC in the Pediatric Medical Home.

Addressing breastfeeding issues enables mothers to reach their breastfeeding goals. We embedded a breastfeeding consultation service run by a pediatrician/International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (MD/IBCLC) in a medical home. This mixed-methods study investigated breastfeeding preparedness and the service's perceived benefits. Mothers with breastfeeding issues/concerns identified at well-baby appointments were referred to the service. Telephone interviews and chart reviews were conducted with 28 participating mothers approximately 1 month after the visits. Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale scores improved significantly from the time of the in-person appointment to 1 month later. Most mothers felt unprepared for breastfeeding despite prenatal efforts. Trust in the pediatrician's recommendation, easy access, and insurance coverage were key factors in seeking the service. Reassurance provided by the MD/IBCLC increased mothers' confidence to breastfeed. The COVID-19 pandemic heightened feelings of isolation and anxiety due to lack of hands-on support from friends and family during the birth hospitalization and when at home.

Latino parents' perceptions of their ability to prevent obesity in their children.

The obesity epidemic in Latino children has reached staggering proportions. This study explored Latino parents' perceptions of their ability to prevent obesity in children. Three focus groups were conducted with 26 Latino parents of preschoolers at a New York City Head Start program. Parents perceived high levels of ability to prevent obesity primarily via dietary influence. Four factors negatively impacted parents' ability: family history, intergenerational and interparental issues, adolescence, and societal pressures. Culturally effective, family-based obesity interventions among Latinos should build upon parental perceptions of ability to prevent obesity, while simultaneously helping parents address the factors they perceive challenge this ability.

Managing the COVID-19 Pandemic Using Quality Improvement Principles: A New York City Pediatric Primary Care Experience.

In the setting of COVID-19, pediatric primary care in New York City faced multiple challenges, requiring large-scale practice reorganization. We used quality improvement principles to implement changes to care delivery rapidly. METHODS: Plan-do-study-act cycles were used, based on primary drivers of consolidation, reorganization of in-person and urgent care, telehealth expansion, patient outreach, mental health linkages, team communication, and safety. RESULTS: The average visit volume in pediatrics decreased from 662 per week to 370. Telehealth visits increased from 2 to 140 per week, whereas urgent in-person visits decreased from 350 to 8 per week. Adolescent visits decreased from 57 to 46 per week. Newborn Clinic visits increased from 37 per week to 54. Show rates increased significantly for pediatrics and adolescent (P = 0.003 and P = 0.038, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Quality improvement methodology allowed for the consolidation of pediatric primary care practices during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, ensuring care for patients while prioritizing safety, evidence-based practices, and available resources.

Outcomes of Neonates Born to Mothers With Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Infection at a Large Medical Center in New York City.

Importance: Limited data on vertical and perinatal transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and health outcomes of neonates born to mothers with symptomatic or asymptomatic coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) are available. Studies are needed to inform evidence-based infection prevention and control (IP&C) policies. Objective: To describe the outcomes of neonates born to mothers with perinatal SARS-CoV-2 infection and the IP&C practices associated with these outcomes. Design, Setting, and Participants: This retrospective cohort analysis reviewed the medical records for maternal and newborn data for all 101 neonates born to 100 mothers positive for or with suspected SARS-CoV-2 infection from March 13 to April 24, 2020. Testing for SARS-CoV-2 was performed using Cobas (Roche Diagnostics) or Xpert Xpress (Cepheid) assays. Newborns were admitted to well-baby nurseries (WBNs) (82 infants) and neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) (19 infants) in 2 affiliate hospitals at a large academic medical center in New York, New York. Newborns from the WBNs roomed-in with their mothers, who were required to wear masks. Direct breastfeeding after appropriate hygiene was encouraged. Exposures: Perinatal exposure to maternal asymptomatic/mild vs severe/critical COVID-19. Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcome was newborn SARS-CoV-2 testing results. Maternal COVID-19 status was classified as asymptomatic/mildly symptomatic vs severe/critical. Newborn characteristics and clinical courses were compared across maternal COVID-19 severity. Results: In total, 141 tests were obtained from 101 newborns (54 girls [53.5%]) on 0 to 25 days of life (DOL-0 to DOL-25) (median, DOL-1; interquartile range [IQR], DOL-1 to DOL-3). Two newborns had indeterminate test results, indicative of low viral load (2.0%; 95% CI, 0.2%-7.0%); 1 newborn never underwent retesting but remained well on follow-up, and the other had negative results on retesting. Maternal severe/critical COVID-19 was associated with newborns born approximately 1 week earlier (median gestational age, 37.9 [IQR, 37.1-38.4] vs 39.1 [IQR, 38.3-40.2] weeks; P = .02) and at increased risk of requiring phototherapy (3 of 10 [30.0%] vs 6 of 91 [7.0%]; P = .04) compared with newborns of mothers with asymptomatic/mild COVID-19. Fifty-five newborns were followed up in a new COVID-19 Newborn Follow-up Clinic at DOL-3 to DOL-10 and remained well. Twenty of these newborns plus 3 newborns followed up elsewhere had 32 nonroutine encounters documented at DOL-3 to DOL-25, and none had evidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection, including 6 with negative retesting results. Conclusions and Relevance: No clinical evidence of vertical transmission was identified in 101 newborns of mothers positive for or with suspected SARS-CoV-2 infection, despite most newborns rooming-in and direct breastfeeding practices.

Newborn Clinic: A Novel Model to Provide Timely, Comprehensive Care to Newborns Following Nursery Discharge.

Ensuring safe and timely follow-up after well baby nursery (WBN) discharge is an ongoing challenge. This study demonstrates the efficacy of a novel model for follow-up, the Newborn Clinic (NBC), in reducing time to outpatient follow-up after WBN discharge. Our retrospective chart review of 17 952 newborns found that time to follow-up visit decreased significantly following NBC establishment. Emergency department visits, a marker of infant morbidity, were slightly increased in the post-establishment cohort. There was no difference, however, in hospital readmissions. Analysis within the post-establishment cohort showed that newborns with jaundice, a high-risk group, were much more likely to have early follow-up if their visit was scheduled with NBC. Our study demonstrates that NBC is an effective model for decreasing time from WBN discharge to follow-up visit. It should be considered as an initiative to run concurrently with expedited newborn discharge initiatives so that safe follow-up need not be sacrificed.

Relationship-Centered Care in a Novel Dual-Visit Model COVID Nursery Follow-Up Clinic.

The COVID Nursery Follow-Up Clinic at our academic medical center in New York City was established during the COVID-19 pandemic to provide care to infants born to SARS-CoV-2 positive mothers. We describe a novel dual-visit model utilizing telehealth and an in-person visit to provide timely, inclusive and relationship-centered care to the mother/infant couplet in a situation where the mother was unable to come to a traditional in-person visit, but the infant needed medically necessary in-person evaluation.

A review of newborn outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread worldwide, it is crucial that we determine populations that are at-risk and develop appropriate clinical care policies to protect them. While several respiratory illnesses are known to seriously impact pregnant women and newborns, preliminary data on the novel SARS-CoV-2 Coronavirus suggest that these groups are no more at-risk than the general population. Here, we review the available literature on newborns born to infected mothers and show that newborns of mothers with positive/suspected SARS-CoV-2 infection rarely acquire the disease or show adverse clinical outcomes. With this evidence in mind, it appears that strict postnatal care policies, including separating mothers and newborns, discouraging breastfeeding, and performing early bathing, may be more likely to adversely impact newborns than they are to reduce the low risk of maternal transmission of SARS-CoV-2 or the even lower risk of severe COVID-19 disease in otherwise healthy newborns.

Impact of breastfeeding self-efficacy and sociocultural factors on early breastfeeding in an urban, predominantly Dominican community.

BACKGROUND: Latinas have high breastfeeding initiation rates that decrease significantly in the first postpartum months. Little is known about the effects of self-efficacy and sociocultural factors on early breastfeeding among low-income Latinas. This study quantifies early breastfeeding rates and identifies factors associated with breastfeeding at 4-6 weeks postpartum in our community. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Mothers were recruited from a newborn clinic (NBC) in the first postpartum week. Questionnaires in the NBC and 4-6 weeks later assessed feeding practices, breastfeeding self-efficacy, and sociocultural factors. Feeding practices in the well baby nursery (WBN) were obtained by chart review. A scale from "1" (exclusive formula feeding) to "5" (exclusive breastfeeding) characterized feeding practices. Paired-sample t tests assessed change in feeding practices, and regression analysis assessed the impact of factors on breastfeeding at 4-6 weeks. RESULTS: We interviewed 209 women: 86.1% Latina, 47.3% foreign-born, and 94.2% Medicaid-recipients. Breastfeeding increased from WBN to NBC (2.6±1.2 to 2.9±1.4; p<0.05) and then decreased by 4-6 weeks (2.9±1.4 to 2.5±1.44; p<0.05), without significant change between WBN and 4-6 weeks. Higher levels of education [ß=0.21 (0.08, 0.56)], breastfeeding a previous child for ≥6 months [ß=0.35 (0.57, 1.8)], foreign birth [ß=0.2 (0.06, 1.07)], and higher breastfeeding self-efficacy scores [ß=0.38 (0.02, 0.05)] were associated with more breastfeeding. Higher breastfeeding self-efficacy scores were associated with exclusive breastfeeding [adjusted odds ratio=1.18 (1.05, 1.32)]. CONCLUSIONS: Breastfeeding self-efficacy was the sole, modifiable factor associated with exclusive breastfeeding. Efforts to improve breastfeeding self-efficacy may serve to support breastfeeding in this population.

Early onset of overweight and obesity among low-income 1- to 5-year olds in New York City.

Early-childhood obesity has reached epidemic proportions, particularly among low-income, minority, urban children. Understanding the progression of obesity prevalence rates from infancy through early childhood can inform public health efforts to combat this epidemic and create developmentally appropriate strategies. In this study, we assessed the prevalence of overweight and obesity among urban 1- to 5-year olds and estimated risk by age and gender. We surveyed the medical records of a random sample of 1,713 children seen at a New York City primary-care network. Outcome measures were weight-for-length for <2-year olds and body mass index for 2- to 5-year olds. Overweight was defined as percentiles >or=85% to <95%, obesity >or=95%. Analysis utilized chi-square, logistic regression, and z tests. Between 1 and 5 years of age, overweight increased 3.7% to 20.8% and obesity 7.5% to 29.8% (p < 0.01). Risk increased with age: compared with 1-year olds, 5-year olds were 8.2 times as likely (95% confidence interval (CI) = 5.5-12.21) to be overweight or obese. Boys were more likely to be obese than girls (adjusted odds ratio = 1.3; 95% CI = 1-1.64). Significant increases in overweight and obesity occurred between ages 1 and 3 years (overweight, 3.7% to 16%, p < 0.01; obesity, 7.5% to 30.2%, p < 0.01). Among urban children, more than half were overweight or obese by age 5. Overweight and obesity rates increased dramatically between the ages of 1 and 3 years. Interventions aimed at this age period may have the greatest impact at preventing childhood obesity.