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His Excellency Dr. Majed Al Fayyadh, Chief Executive Officer of the General Organization of King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Centre (KFSH&RC) in Riyadh launched the “Breastfeeding Awareness Day” organized by the Breastfeeding Committee of the hospital under the slogan "Together for Sustainable Breastfeeding,” which included 10 awareness activities focusing on the importance of breastfeeding for mothers and children. The event was held from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. and witnessed a significant turnout from stakeholders and visitors in the lobby of the North Tower building.

Dr. Emad Khadawardi, Consultant, Neonatologist, Deputy Chairman of Pediatrics Department, and chairman of the Breastfeeding Committee at KFSH&RC-Riyadh, stressed that KFSH&RC-Riyadh is considered a child-friendly hospital because it follows the World Health Organization's (WHO’s) "Ten steps" to promote and protect breastfeeding by implementing best practices in health care. He pointed out that the hospital received the first accreditation in 2006, followed by the second accreditation in 2010, and it is in process to be recognized again by the WHO and the Ministry of Health Saudi Arabia as a child-friendly hospital.

Dr. Khadawardi explained that the 10 steps taken by the hospital included the following: to lay down a written breastfeeding policy, to update all health care workers regularly on the policy, to train all health care workers on the skills needed to implement the policy, to educate all pregnant women about the benefits of breastfeeding and the way to do it, to assist mothers to start breastfeeding immediately after birth and later when their condition gets stable, to explain to mothers the method of breastfeeding and the way to maintain good milk supply even when they stay in separate rooms away from their babies for medical reasons, to avoid giving babies any food and drink other than breast milk unless advised by the doctor, to educate mothers to stay together with their children 24 hours a day, to encourage breastfeeding on the child’s demand, to avoid giving any artificial teats or pacifiers to infants, and, last but not least, to promote breastfeeding support groups and encourage mothers to visit them following discharge from the hospital or clinic.

The head of the Breastfeeding Committee summarized the benefits of breastfeeding saying that it protects the child from disease and infection and strengthens his/her immunity, reduces the chances of allergies, and the child’s aversion to a particular type of food. Natural milk stimulates the brain’s excellent growth and that of the child, in general. Breastfeeding also helps the mother's body to return to the pre-pregnancy condition and reduces the likelihood of immediate pregnancy, as well as it clearly reduces the chances of breast cancer, as opined by him.

Dr. Khadawardi pointed out that several departments participated in the Breastfeeding Awareness Day including family medicine, women and obstetrics clinics, maternity and hypnotherapy unit, social services, nutrition, pharmacy, pediatric department and neonatal intensive care unit, physiotherapy unit, patient experience corner, and the sharing of successful breastfeeding stories, in addition to the Child Care Society, and all these supported the breastfeeding program.