Evidence-Based Briefs

Recognizing the potential of sharing experiences and stories to promote change in the nutrition field, evidence-based briefs (EBBs) are narrative pieces of a larger case study, typically related to an individual gear and provide options of how BBF recommendation(s) could be implemented. EBBs are:

• A rich and versatile component of the Becoming Breastfeeding Friendly (BBF) toolbox.
• Real-world examples of what other countries have done to enable their breastfeeding environments.
• Intended to be an informative and practical tool for evidence-based breastfeeding scaling up efforts.

EBBs are targeted to country committee members, policy makers, stakeholders, and breastfeeding advocates to inform them on the what, how, and why others have successfully translated knowledge into policies and programs.

Using EBBs to explore breastfeeding interventions - linking research to policy:

Each EBB addresses what interventions have been developed to improve breastfeeding, how to operationalize actions effectively and why it has the potential to generate a wide variation in breastfeeding outcomes depending on the local context. These are not systematic reviews but rather illustrations of how other countries have improved their breastfeeding friendly environments.

EBBs can be used for:

• Understanding key policy issues and potential solutions
• Monitoring process and evaluating impact (to ultimately influence policy-making processes);
• Identifying areas for improvement and refining solutions; and
• Supporting a selected plan of action using evidence.

Each EBB is organized as follows:

• Description & Context - aim and target population of the intervention
• Main components – “step-by-step” explanation including how the components were delivered
• Evidence of Implementation Strategy –identifies measurable outcomes and strategies that demonstrate how the implementation happened
• Cost and cost-effectiveness –including unit cost and total cost for implement and scaling up (where available) or any other relevant cost data that could be useful in the translating process.
• Additional info–Perceptions and experiences of interested people, benefits and potential damages, scaling up considerations, barriers to implement and equity considerations.

Using EBBs to inform the development of recommendations and actions

The EBBS may or may not be generalizable, but they unpack how complex interventions can work, showcase real-world examples of how others working in similar contexts have sought improvement, and can help shape a broad, honest policy dialogue. BBF committee members, policy makers, stakeholders, and breastfeeding advocates are encouraged to take these EBBs into account when thinking about whether an intervention is viable. For example, BBF committee members can use EBBs when developing recommendations and proposing actions based on BBF findings. EBBs can be used to inform the development of initial recommendations to be presented at Meeting 3 and the recommended actions for Meeting 4 by guiding BBF committee members in decisions about: developing the policy agenda, identifying the specific objectives, identifying policy options, evaluating the options, advancing recommendations, and building a consensus.