Keystone 10 is a quality improvement breastfeeding initiative aimed at improving the protection, promotion and support of breastfeeding for all Pennsylvania infants, mothers and families. The Department of Health has developed the Keystone 10 Initiative as a means to assist Pennsylvania’s birthing facilities in adopting and implementing evidence-based maternity care practices with the goal of improving individual facility and state level breastfeeding care and rates and ultimately improving the health of mothers and babies.
Participating facilities focus on breastfeeding initiation, exclusive breastfeeding, skin-to-skin contact and rooming-in, among other elements. Keystone 10 is based on similar initiatives in other states that have shown success in assisting birthing facilities in the promotion of breastfeeding through establishment of breastfeeding policy, implementation of procedure improvements and supporting families in making informed feeding decisions. This initiative is engaging Pennsylvania’s birthing facilities in local, regional and state level efforts to improve the initiation, duration and exclusivity rates of breastfeeding across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
If you have additional questions, please contact:
Joe Wagner
Pennsylvania Breastfeeding Awareness and Support Program
Pennsylvania Department of Health
Bureau of Family Health
Seventh Floor, East Wing
625 Forster St.
Harrisburg, PA 17120-0701
RA-DHKEYSTONE10@pa.gov
The initiative was developed by the Pennsylvania Department of Health in partnership with the PA Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics and with the support of the Hospital and Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania.
Keystone 10 was modeled after the Texas Ten Step Star Achiever Initiative. The Pennsylvania Department of Health would like to acknowledge the Texas Department of State Health Services for the use of materials from the Texas Ten Step Initiative.