Child Health for All offers a comprehensive, up-to date and accessible introduction to population child health for undergraduate and postgraduate students of various health science disciplines. The text addresses a broad scope of content, including environmental- policy and law-, health system-, clinical-, family-, and community aspects of public health, and offers effective strategies for the promotion, protection and improvement of children's health. Engaging with current global plans and strategies, such as the Sustainable Development Goals and the Survive, Thrive and Transform strategy, the text discusses strategies for the promotive, preventive and service delivery aspects of healthcare. The work addresses the multiple dimensions and determinants of health, covering all stages of the child's life course from pre-conception to late adolescence, and considers responses to the health needs of children by the health and associated social sectors. Presenting a critical appraisal of issues and challenges common to many low- and middle-income contexts, and drawing in detail on South African conditions and influences, policy and regulatory frameworks, health services infrastructure and health system considerations, the text has wide application to the realities of the southern African and similar regions.

Although breastfeeding is a key child survival strategy, breastfeeding practices in South African health institutions can generally be categorised as being poor. This cross-sectional study aimed to document practices around breastfeeding support and compliance with the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative's "10 steps to successful breastfeeding." Suboptimal practices were identified in both baby-friendly accredited and non-accredited facilities, but more so in the latter. None of the facilities passed all 10 steps. Steps that required advice and support from nursing staff - namely step 5 (showing mothers how to breastfeed), step 8 (encouraging breastfeeding on demand), and step 10 (breastfeeding support after discharge from the facility) were particularly poorly done in the majority of facilities. Baby-friendly certified institutions were significantly better than non-accredited facilities for steps 2 (training), 4 (initiating breastfeeding within 1 hour), and 7 (rooming-in). Baby-Friendly Hospitals could not maintain their accredited status on this assessment. However, some good practices appeared to be more sustainable over time.