It comes as World Breastfeeding Week draws to a close on Saturday.

The theme for the week is "protect breastfeeding: a shared responsibility".

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Bendigo Health lactation consultant Rebecca Keating said it was important to raise awareness and educate the wider community about the benefits of breastfeeding.

She said this year's theme was focused on informing and educating people around breastfeeding.

"Breastfeeding really contributes to the survival, health and wellbeing of mum and baby," she said.

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"Identifying the shared responsibility is about acknowledging that although mums receive individual support from people like me, it's also many other people's responsibility to support mums with breastfeeding."

Ms Keating said this could include workplaces accommodating breastfeeding parents returning to the office after having a baby.

"Have things in place (to create) a supportive environment, such as a separate room available if she was to bring in her pumping equipment during the day," she said.

Ms Keating said Bendigo Health provided a breastfeeding support service via its lactation consultant team.

The team offers breastfeeding education and support to women and their families throughout their antenatal and postnatal period.

"Throughout women's pregnancy, we provide antenatal classes, so two of these are run every week and in relation to the pandemic, we have the option of face-to-face classes where women can come in or we also have it via Zoom," she said.

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"We also have an education package on the Bendigo Health website and that basically goes through the normality of what is normal with milk production and babies' feeding post-birth.

"Within the hospital we receive referrals within the women's ward, children's ward and special care nursery where we go in and help mums post-birth.

"We also have an outpatient clinic, where mums can come back in and see us and receive that support until the baby is six weeks old.

"In relation to the pandemic, it's really good that we have been able to provide our service via telehealth for when there has been times when we haven't been able to have high numbers of people coming into the hospital."

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Throughout World Breastfeeding Week, Ms Keating and the team have been promoting and spreading awareness through different wards of the hospital, along with on social media.

"We have sent emails and done activities for the staff such as baked goods just to raise that awareness," she said.

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