A CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY OF

THE ASSOCIATION OF BREASTFEEDING COUNSELLORS

In 1984 a group of mothers decided to organise themselves to be able to help other mothers who wanted to breastfeed. The mothers were members of the Mother & Baby Club which was a branch within Cana Movement that organized activities for mothers with young children.  During the same year Marianne Theuma and Doris Vella launched the group’s first leaflet and the group was called The Breastfeeding Mothers. They soon progressed to a group of 4 and within a year there were another 7 helpers. The group used to meet to discuss case studies in order to learn from each other and attended Marianne Theuma’s breastfeeding sessions in her antenatal courses as training. The one thing all members had in common was that they had breastfed and were proud of it which created enthusiasm and a will to succeed. The group established themselves providing breastfeeding sessions in Cana Movement’s Antenatal Courses, giving telephone support, visiting mothers at home to help with breastfeeding difficulties and writing articles for newspapers and magazines. An outing was also organized twice a year for fund raising. Other activities included visits to the Natural History Museum followed by tea and cake whilst in summer a swimming pool would be invaded by a mass of mothers and babies.

Unfortunately, members left but luckily new members then joined. The coordinator also changed from time-to-time. After Doris Vella, Anna Tabone spent several years running the group, then Liz Cutajar, Helen Borg and now since October 2003 the present coordinator Christine Borg. 

There have been a few special events which were important to the group. In 1994, The International Year of the Family was launched during a large forum in Malta. The Breastfeeding Mothers were invited to host a workshop organized by UNICEF on breastfeeding. This was the group’s first contact with IBFAN which they then became affiliated with. 

Later that year UNICEF sponsored two persons to attend the IBFAN Regional Meeting in Hungary. As a good relationship was developing with the Midwives Association, a midwife was invited to use one of these places. This was repeated again a few years later when a member and a midwife attended the next regional meeting in Luxembourg. 

In 1995 a member attended the World Forum for Breastfeeding organised by the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action at Bangkok.   

The Breastfeeding Mothers affiliated to WABA and the group began to celebrate World Breastfeeding Week (1-7 August) just one of the activities WABA groups are known to organize.  

The group’s members managed to qualify themselves as Breastfeeding Counsellors through a correspondance course, which helped to develop their profession. 

In 1996 work started on the formulation of a breastfeeding policy between Helen Borg of the Breastfeeding Mothers, Maria Ellul of the Health Promotion and Margaret Abela of the Maternity Services, St. Luke’s Hospital. The draft work was unfortunately left idle till the year 2000 when it was finally launched.

A new member, Christine Borg joined the group in 1997

From left - HelenBorg, Anna Cutajar and Liz Cutajar, from the Breastfeeding Mothers. Dr. Michael Farrugia, Minister of Health. Margaret Abela and Rita Borg Xuereb, Midwives Association.  Sue Grech, from Breastfeeding Mothers.

In 1997 IBFAN decided to hold their regular Regional meeting in Malta. Organising this took over the year’s work for the Breastfeeding Mothers. IBFAN hold a regional meeting every other year. Several people from different countries attended as well as a few Maltese. Unfortunately the conference was poorly attended by Maltese doctors. The first day was dedicated to Malta. A seminar was held so that foreign breastfeeding experts could share their knowledge with several Maltese speakers including the Minister of Health and Head of the Paediatric Department. The whole event was successful and developed a number of new relationships between the group and other organisations.

From left - Maria Buhagiar, Helen Borg, Christine Borg, Odette Debono, Liz Cutajar, Sue Grech and Anna Cutajar - Breastfeeding Mothers Group

1997 was also the year when the Breastfeeding Mothers felt it was time to become more independent. The group detached itself from the Mother & Baby Club and this move saw the change in the name of the group which now came to be The Association of Breastfeeding Counsellors. The Co-ordinator was Liz Cutajar who dedicated herself and was involved in much of the group’s services.  The members were Liz Cutajar, Anna Cutajar, Helen Borg, Maria Buhagiar, Sue Grech, Christine Borg and Odette Debono. The group was now one of many support groups that form Cana Movement with their own finances and committee and the freedom to make their own decisions. The services offered were a 24hr telephone line that mothers could use to satisfy immediate needs. This service was enhanced by visits to mothers’ homes whenever the need arose. A Breastfeeding Course was also given to expectant mothers and this was held monthly. Another monthly activity was the Babes and Bumps social morning held for mothers after giving birth. This meeting served to encourage and empower mothers to stick to their decision to breastfeed even when faced with undermining comments. 

A new member, Nancy Camilleri joined the group in early 1999.

In 1999 a member attended the IBFAN regional meeting in Goteborg, Sweden. This was also the year when the ABC celebrated Breastfeeding Week by producing two videos which were shown on the public TV channel courtesy of the PBS. The ABC also published leaflets with some information about breastfeeding and with the numbers of their telephone service. The leaflets have since been given out at the Postnatal Ward to mothers who want to breastfeed. 

The year 2000 saw the publication of A Breastfeeding Policy for Malta. The long term target of the policy was to raise the initiation rate of breastfeeding to 90% 

 

Policy can be viewed here

In 2001 Liz Cutajar resigned as Co-ordinator and Helen Borg who had just graduated and became a midwife at the Karin Grech Hospital became the new Co-ordinator of the Association of Breastfeeding Counsellors. By this time the children of the group’s members were no longer babies and toddlers. The mothers while still showing interest in the progress of the Association however started to drift slowly away as they one by one became more involved in paid work elsewhere or in study. The Association’s provision was reduced to the bare essentials where members answered queries on the phone and did some home visits. The Breastfeeding Course was held regularly every other month but the Committee Meetings dwindled to a few meetings a year.

In 2002 Helen Borg was appointed as Breastfeeding Advisor on the Postnatal ward of Karin Grech hospital were her job is to see that all mothers wanting to breastfed find the support they need.

In September 2003 a new member, Sarah Cutajar, joined the group.

In October 2003 Christine Borg was elected as Co-ordinator.

In January 2004 an internal evaluation of the ABC was held and the Committee members during a meeting voted for a change in the organizational set up with a view of expanding the quantity and quality of the services the ABC wanted to provide. The ABC then embarked on the following objectives for the year 2004-2005:

  • to restructure the ABC into a semi-formal organisation;
  • to formulate a local course for Breastfeeding Counsellors;
  • to make a call for new members to join the ABC and to undertake the Cana Breastfeeding Counsellors Course thus increasing the number of Breastfeeding Counsellors in 2005;
  • to set up a website to advertise the services of the ABC as well as to establish a spot where people can interact to learn about breastfeeding and to share their experiences;
  • to collaborate with other stakeholders to maximise the synergy of resources;
  • to set up a headquarters to centralise and co-ordinate services and teams;
  • to set up a programme to facilitate enough regular income that covers expenses.

In May 2004 a call for mothers to train as Breastfeeding Counsellors was made.  The call was answered by twenty women.

In June 2004 during a Committee meeting it was decided that the present Committee was not functioning as well as it could. A vote was taken to keep only members who participated actively on the Committee. The new Committee is made up of Christine Borg- Co-ordinator, Nancy Camilleri – Secretary, Sarah Cutajar – PRO, Maria Buhagiar – Community Services Manager, Anna Cutajar – Projects Manager, Helen Borg – Member/Technical tutor. 

In July 2004 a group of seventeen mothers started their training as Breastfeeding Counsellors in a year long course. Work started on the design and formulation of a website for the ABC. About 250 Gold Bows, symbols of breastmilk as the gold standard, were patiently made by two members of the ABC to distribute to the public. One hundred white T-Shirts have been printed with the logo of the ABC and a slogan promoting breastfeeding. Two hundred ‘business’ size cards have been printed showing Sarah and Keziah Cutajar as the ABC Breastfeeding Mother and Baby of 2004. Names of the ABC Breastfeeding Counsellors are printed on the reverse side for mothers to call them should the need arise. Preparations were made to celebrate World Breastfeeding Week 2004 in collaboration with the Health Promotion and the Midwifery Management of Karin Grech Hospital. Sarah and Keziah have posed for the posters and FAQ brochure published by the Health Promotion. The National Council Of Women monthly feature promoted activities for WBW 2004 in the section News and Views. Maria Buhagiar wrote an article for the Sunday Times about the theme Exclusive Breastfeeding: Safe, Sound, Sustainable.

A Press Conference was jointly held on Monday 2nd August by the Health Promotion, the ABC and the Midwifery Management, KGH. The venue was the Parentcraft Room at the Maternity Ward, KGH. The guest speakers were Ms. Sina Bugeja, Director of the Commission for the Promotion of Equality for Men and Women (NCPE) and Ms. Sonia Camilleri, Commissioner for Children. Other speakers included Lucienne Pace of the Health Promotion who also coordinated the event, Ms. Nathalie Zammit Midwifery Manager, KGH and Ms. Helen Borg, Breastfeeding Advisor, KGH, Ms. Christine Borg, Co-ordinator, ABC (read speech) and Ms. Sarah Cutajar with her baby daughter Keziah who were the ABC Breastfeeding Mother and Baby for 2004. Apart from the Press several decision makers from key institutions that have an impact on mothers’ breastfeeding experiences attended.

From left Ms. Lucienne Pace, Ms. Sonia Camilleri, Ms. Christine Borg and Ms. Sarah Cutajar with baby Keziah. 

The ABC launched its new website www.breastfeedingmalta.org  on Tuesday 3rd August.  

On Wednesday 4th a group of 10 members set up a stall at Citygate Valletta and talked to passers-by. The group gave out Golden Bows and business size cards with contact numbers of ABC Breastfeeding Counsellors

                                      

On Friday 6th a delegation visited Gozo where a Press Conference was held at Gozo General Hospital (GGH). The Hon Giovanna Debono, Minister for Gozo,  was invited to address the meeting together with other guests including Heads of Departments and Staff from Gozo General Hospital. Ms. Christine Borg of the ABC made a proposal for collaboration between the Maternity Services at GGH and the ABC (read speech).    

The Hon Minister for Gozo Ms. Giovanna Debono speaking to the ABC delegation and staff of Gozo General Hospital.

In October Sarah Cutajar resigned because of personal reasons. Graziella zarb, a Breastfeeding Counsellor Trainee has been appointed PRO on the Executive Committee.

In November Dr. Kenneth Grech, CEO of the Office for Mater Dei Hospital accepted a proposal made by the ABC for trainees in the Breastfeeding Counsellors Course 2004-2005  to undertake practical training at the Maternity Ward, KGH under the supervision of Ms. Helen Borg, Breastfeeding Advisor.

 

July and August 2005 were two months in which excitement and anxiety were quite high as the trainees in the ABC Breastfeeding Counsellor Course finished their course and sat for their written and oral exams.

A meeting to evaluate Breastfeeding Week 2004 was finally held between the Midwifery Services, St. Lukes and the ABC in late August. The Department of Health Promotion were not represented at the Evaluation. As this meeting was not held in time to celebrate Breastfeeding week in August, it was decided to celebrate Malta Breastfeeding Week 2005 in October this year during the week Friday 7th to Thursday 13th.

The programme was organised jointly by the Midwifery Services, St Lukes Hospital (SLH) and the ABC. A Seminar organised by the Midwifery Services, SLH titled Breastfeeding: The Best Start was held on Friday 7th October between 9.00am – 1.00pm. The Seminar targeted mothers, pregnant women and nursing students. Speakers from St. Lukes gave presentations on various topics while the ABC Co-Ordinator gave a 20 minute presentation on the Breastfeeding Counsellor (read presentation). Ms. Sonia Camilleri, Commissioner for Children gave a talk on the Rights of the child as established by Article 24 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child that said that Governments have the duty to actively ensure the promotion of breastfeeding.

On Saturday 8th, ABC members and a group representing midwives from the MMDNA enjoyed a Buffet dinner together at the Waterfront, Gzira.

  

The Sunday Times of Malta (2nd) and Il-Mument (9th Oct.) respectively featured articles written by Maria Buhagiar and Charmaine Galea both ABC Breastfeeding Counsellors.

On Monday 10th the members proudly inaugurated their headquarters the Malta Breastfeeding Centre at 21, Dar ta Kana, The Mall in Floriana. Ms. Sonia Camilleri, Commissioner for Children officially opened the premises while Fr. Louis Camilleri blessed the HQ. This memorable occasion was further enhanced by the certification ceremony of eleven ABC Breastfeeding Counsellors who had successfully participated in the first locally designed course for Breastfeeding Counsellors . Ms. Camilleri and the ABC Co-Ordinator both gave a speech (read both speeches and see photos).

 

Tuesday 11th was another exciting morning as about thirty women and some of their children gathered in Valletta where together holding our banner and placards we walked from City Gate through Republic Street to Parliament. The group then walked to the Ministry of Health where the Hon Minister Dr. Louis Deguara welcomed us in his office pushchairs and all. Ms. Nathalie Zammit read a Declarationin (hereunder in blue) the name of Midwifery Services and staff from the Special Care Baby Unit, SLH and the ABC. The ABC voiced its concern on the fact that Government does not vote finances for the work related to breastfeeding to which Minister Deguara invited the ABC to a meeting with him to discuss the difficulties. Other concerns voiced from various participants were related to the influence of companies that import baby foods and related products on Health Professionals, Health Centres and pharmacies. Some reported that mothers were also given samples of breastfeeding substitutes.

DECLARATION:

"The Midwives and Nurses working in the Maternity Section and Special Care Baby Unit of Karin Grech Hospital and the Association of Breastfeeding Counsellors believe that Breastfeeding is the optimal form of infant nutrition. We believe that babies have the right to the best start in life, one that will protect them from illness, boost their intelligence and offer a sense of security and love. 

We believe that the Government should honour its pledge, taken during the World Health Organisation Convention, to implement the Global Strategy.

This means that more importance should be given to the protection, promotion and to the support of Breastfeeding whilst striving to achieve the goals laid out in the Malta Breastfeeding Policy."

 

 

On Thursday 13th a delegation of five members visited Gozo. The first stop was made at the Ministry where we were cordially welcomed by the Minister’s secretary Ms. Claire Xuereb who happened to be pregnant. The ABC members voiced their intent to continue the relationship with people working in the area of breastfeeding in Gozo that was started during Breastfeeding Week 2004. The delegation then visited Gozo General Hospital where we were warmly welcomed by the midwives on duty. Concern was shown by the staff regarding the influence of representatives of infant feeding related products on the procedures and advise given to breastfeeding mothers by some staff at the maternity ward. The last but not least visit was made to the Gozo NGO Centre in Xewkija. The ABC has filed an application to register as members of the Gozo NGO Centre.

On 17th October The Malta Breastfeeding Centre opened officially for the first time from 9.00am to 1.00pm. On the same day the ABC Co-ordinator, Ms. Christine Borg together with Ms. Sandra Bianco, a new ABC Breastfeeding Counsellor kept their appointment with the Hon. Minister Dr. Louis Deguara at his office at Parliament. The discussion  focused on a particular aspect of the financial needs of the ABC.

On the 4th November the ABC Breastfeeding Mother & Child 2005 Award was presented to Ms. Sylvia Bugeja and her daughter Kelsey. Fourteen mother and child dyads participated in this event. 
 

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