ANNEX 1: WHO GUIDELINES AND TOOLS THAT SUPPORT EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT WHO recommendations for improving infant and child health are included in a range of guidelines, tools and training materials. Many of these are relevant for improving ECD. Areas of child health and public health for which WHO guidelines are relevant include neonatal care; infant and young child nutrition; environmental health; prevention and treatment of childhood illnesses; violence and injury prevention; prevention of obesity and promotion of physical activity; caregiver mental health; and support for children with developmental difficulties or disability.
a. Infant and young child feeding Ensuring that infants are provided with optimal feeding from birth helps to improve ECD.
Breastfeeding counselling: a training course Exclusive and continued breastfeeding significantly contribute to ECD. This course is designed to provide health workers with the skills needed to support mothers and their children to breastfeed optimally. It includes guides for the course director and trainers, a participant’s manual, a booklet with overhead figures, a slide book and annexes. www.who.int/maternal_child_adolescent/documents/ who_cdr_93_3/en
Infant and young child feeding counselling: an integrated course This integrated infant feeding counselling course is designed to give health workers the competencies required to carry out effective counselling for breastfeeding, HIV and infant feeding and complementary feeding. It is designed for a five-day training of health workers in primary health care services and for lay counsellors. www.who.int/nutrition/publications/ infantfeeding/9789241594745/en
Combined course on growth assessment and infant and young child feeding counselling This course is designed to give health workers the competencies required to carry out growth assessment and effective counselling for breastfeeding and complementary feeding. It is primarily for health workers in primary health care services and for lay counsellors. The course imparts skills for measuring, plotting and interpreting a child’s growth status (to detect undernutrition or overweight/ obesity), for assessing breastfeeding and complementary feeding to identify any problems, and for counselling caregivers to promote/reinforce appropriate practices and manage growth or feeding problems. www.who.int/nutrition/publications/ infantfeeding/9789241504812/en
Guideline: counselling of women to improve breastfeeding practices This guideline provides global, evidence-informed recommendations on breastfeeding counselling, as a public health intervention, to improve breastfeeding practices among pregnant women and mothers who intend to breastfeed, or are currently breastfeeding, and their infants and children. It makes recommendations for breastfeeding counselling, such as frequency, timing, mode and provider of breastfeeding counselling. www.who.int/nutrition/publications/guidelines/ counselling-women-improve-bf-practices/en
NetCode toolkit for ongoing monitoring and periodic assessment of the Code The Network for Global Monitoring and Support for Implementation of the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes (NetCode) toolkit aims to reinvigorate and reinforce ongoing monitoring and periodic assessment of the Code and national laws by providing protocols, guidance and tools. Findings and results from implementation of either protocol can be used to advocate for the strengthening of existing legislative and regulatory frameworks. www.who.int/nutrition/netcode/toolkit/en
Annex 1: WHO guidelines and tools that support ECD
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