---
title: "Sutter Santa Rosa Earns Baby-Friendly Designation | Sutter Health"
description: "Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital is now the first hospital in Sonoma County to earn Baby-Friendly designation for its newborn feeding and care practices."
url: "https://vitals.sutterhealth.org/media-resources/press-releases/sutter-santa-rosa-earns-baby-friendly-designation"
---

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4.  Sutter Santa Rosa Earns Baby-Friendly Designation

# Sutter Santa Rosa Earns Baby-Friendly Designation

Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital is now the first hospital in Sonoma County to earn Baby-Friendly designation for its newborn feeding and care practices.

September 22, 2026

![Exterior of Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital, a multi-story glass-and-brick building, photographed at dusk with entrance signage and a driveway in the foreground.](https://edge.sitecorecloud.io/sutterhealt962c-sutterhealt8fce-production57cc-4860/media/Project/SutterHealth/Vitals/press-releases/22_SSRRH_2Z5A1738.jpg?h=533&iar=0&w=800 "Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital")

SANTA ROSA, Calif. – Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital is now the first hospital in Sonoma County to earn Baby-Friendly designation, a national recognition for hospitals that meet evidence-based standards for infant feeding and newborn care.

The designation recognizes the hospital’s work to give families education and support around feeding and caring for their newborns during the first days after birth. 

![A black and pink banner reading 'Congratulations to Perinatal & Infant Services for achieving 86% Exclusive Breastfeeding Rate,' decorated with a mother-and-baby silhouette and floral illustrations.](https://edge.sitecorecloud.io/sutterhealt962c-sutterhealt8fce-production57cc-4860/media/Project/SutterHealth/Vitals/press-releases/Banner-at-SSRRH.jpg "Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital has earned a Baby-Friendly designation, a national recognition for hospitals that meet evidence-based standards for infant feeding and newborn care.")

“Welcoming a new baby is an exciting time, and there is a lot for parents to learn,” said Nancy Ferry, inpatient care manager for the neonatal intensive care unit at Sutter Santa Rosa. “We want every family to leave feeling supported, informed and confident in caring for their baby.”

[Baby-Friendly USA](https://babyfriendlyusa.org/ "Baby-Friendly USA") awards the designation to hospitals that implement the Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding, a set of evidence-based practices developed through the World Health Organization and UNICEF’s Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative. The practices include staff training, prenatal education, skin-to-skin contact after birth, support for breastfeeding and keeping mothers and babies together during their hospital stay.

Hospitals must develop policies, train staff, collect data and demonstrate that they are following the required practices. They also undergo an on-site assessment by Baby-Friendly USA. The designation is valid for five years, with hospitals required to continue monitoring their practices and working to improve care.

“Every family is different, and every parent should make the feeding choices that are right for them,” Ferry said. “Our role is to make sure families have the information and support they need to make those decisions.”

Sutter Santa Rosa’s three-year effort involved nurses, physicians, lactation consultants and other care team members across the Family Birth Center and neonatal intensive care unit. Teams at Sutter’s Alta Bates Summit Medical Center – Alta Bates Campus in Berkeley and Sutter’s CPMC in San Francisco, which are also Baby-Friendly designated, shared their experience and best practices to help the Santa Rosa team achieve the designation in record time.

More than 1,400 babies are born at Sutter Santa Rosa each year, making the new designation relevant to thousands of local families over time.

Sutter Santa Rosa’s [Family Birth Center](https://www.sutterhealth.org/find-location/facility/sutter-santa-rosa-regional-hospital-1043247018) provides care throughout pregnancy, labor and delivery, while its Level III neonatal intensive care unit cares for premature and critically ill newborns. The hospital also offers lactation support, childbirth education and other resources for families before and after delivery.

![A new mother smiles from her hospital bed while holding her swaddled newborn, talking with a nurse in patterned scrubs standing bedside](https://edge.sitecorecloud.io/sutterhealt962c-sutterhealt8fce-production57cc-4860/media/Project/SutterHealth/Vitals/press-releases/Baby-friendly.jpg "Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital births more than 1,400 babies each year.")

## Topics

[Breastfeeding](https://vitals.sutterhealth.org/search?facets=%5B%7B%22i%22%3A%22c_healthTopics.name%22%2C%22v%22%3A%5B%22Breastfeeding%22%5D%7D%5D&verticalKey=articles)[Newborns](https://vitals.sutterhealth.org/search?facets=%5B%7B%22i%22%3A%22c_healthTopics.name%22%2C%22v%22%3A%5B%22Newborns%22%5D%7D%5D&verticalKey=articles)

## Labor and delivery

Bringing a new life into the world deserves expert, compassionate care. If you're expecting a baby, our labor and delivery team can provide a safe, supportive birth experience tailored to your needs.

[Learn more about Labor and delivery](https://www.sutterhealth.org/services/labor-and-delivery)

## Related articles

### [Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital NICU delivers for Michigan mom](https://vitals.sutterhealth.org/patient-stories/ssrrh-nicu-delivers-for-michigan-mom)

### [How to Keep Your Baby Safe During Pandemic](https://vitals.sutterhealth.org/perspectives/caring-for-a-newborn-in-a-pandemic)

### [Welcoming Sutter’s First Babies of the New Year](https://vitals.sutterhealth.org/patient-stories/welcoming-sutters-first-babies-of-the-new-year)

### [How Women’s, Children’s Care Soared in Sacramento 10 Years Ago](https://vitals.sutterhealth.org/our-people/how-womens-childrens-care-soared-in-sacramento-10-years-ago)

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