Formula discharge bags are one of the things that hospitals (nurses, physicians, administration) seem to think is a cute and attractive gift to give to new mothers. Why we need to give patients gifts is beyond me. No one being discharged from the cardiac care unit gets samples and coupons of low tar cigarettes. Nurses don't market Tupperware to med-surg patients, but they market formula to new mothers every time one of those bags is given out---with or without the formula in it. As I said before, this is usually because of a contract with the formula company. Sometimes it is the purchasing department that has negotiated this contract which explains why the CEO never knows about it. Taking out the formula does not negate the marketing of the product. The name of the formula and the logo of the company are all over the contents of the bag. When you give this to a mother it sanctions the use of the product. That's is why the endorsement of the nurse, physician and hospital is so important in the use of these bags. If you were given a bag, make an appointment with the customer service department, return the bag and register a complaint. If you do not write letters to the hospital complaining then nothing will happen. Copy the letters to EVERYONE!!! Why do you continue to give out the bags? This presents a potential health danger to the infant. If people are interested is how to reduce these commercial pressures and address real ways to remove them, please contact me regarding the Code training workshop that NABA will be conducting in May. We will look closely at how to eliminate this menace to our babies and mothers. Marsha Walker, RN, IBCLC Weston, MA *********************************************** The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html