Tobey Hospital has been designated "baby-friendly" by the World Health Organization and United Nations Children's Fund.

A ceremony was held Monday at the hospital to celebrate the distinction.

The Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative is a global program that recognizes hospitals and birth centers that offer breastfeeding mothers the information, confidence, and skills they need to keep up the practice.

Tobey Hospital is the third facility and the first community hospital in Massachusetts to receive the designation.

Mary Ellen Boisvert, an RN and nurse manager of the Makepeace Maternity Unit at Tobey Hospital said the hospital received the honor because of the on-going hard work and dedication of its staff.

"The nursing and medical staffs are dedicated to providing the best care to the patients who deliver at our hospital," said Boisvert. "It's a culture. ... It is something we work towards everyday."

The culture has earned the unit a long-standing reputation of excellence. That is why Erin Hovan, wife of Southcoast Hospitals Group President and CEO Keith Hovan, said she chose Tobey to deliver her daughter, Reya.

"The maternity group here is incredibly warm and supportive," she said.

Tobey Hospital met numerous requirements to achieve the baby-friendly designation, including the practice of “rooming in,” which allows mothers and infants to remain together 24-hours-a-day. Other requirements include providing breastfeeding education to all staff and encouraging skin-to-skin contact between mother and baby immediately after delivery.

Tobey Hospital also provides breastfeeding support after discharge through bi-monthly support groups and outpatient visits with counselors.