1511cf66_all_To_Action_on_Breastfeeding__Topic
[ID] 230 [Interest Areas] Concerned Citizen [Comment] As a breastfeeding mother, I would like to make a suggestion about hospitals. I gave birth to a baby boy in November of 2008 at Sacred Heart Hospital in Effingham, IL. I thought ahead and decided to hire a private lactation consultant to be there to help the baby and me directly after delivery and to be on-call for the remainder of my time in the hospital. The reason I had to hire one is because the hospital did not provide one for me. I had to pay out of pocket, insurance did not cover this. I could only imagine the amount of mothers that give birth at just this one hospital that get frustrated with breastfeeding, since the first few weeks are the hardest, and give up because they didn't know what to do or have the money to hire their own lactation consultant. I had some nurses come in when my consultant was not available and they were of very little use since they did not know much more than myself on the topic of breastfeeding. My suggestion would be that every hospital be required to keep a certified breastfeeding consultant on staff to handle only breastfeeding support and education. I believe there was a nurse that was certified while I was there but I never saw her because she was busy doing her nursing job. It was not her job to help the breastfeeding mothers. Even better would be to have a certified lactation consultant that is affiliated with the Le Leche League. It would also be nice if the hospitals were required to allow new mothers to contact this lactation consultant for the first few weeks after birth to help with any problems. Mothers should also be referred to the nearest Le Leche League to find help for the remainder of their breastfeeding time with their infants. Thank you for the opportunity to voice my concerns. [Topic] 
Maternal and Infant Care Practices: Prenatal, Hospital, and Post-Delivery Care
Call To Action on Breastfeeding
Topic