Find this article at:
http://www.azcentral.com/health/0421nursingmoms.html
<< Program enables moms to breast-feed at work
Kerry Fehr-Snyder
The Arizona Republic
Apr. 21, 2003 12:00 AM
Kelly Scranton has a job perk that she wouldn't trade for everything -
permission to nurse her newborn at work.
As office chief for the state health lab's newborn screening program, the
33-year-old first-time mom brought her son Sean to work three days a week so
she could nurse him at the office until recently.
She got so good at it that she could read paperwork and type on her computer
while he ate. She even discreetly nursed him at staff meetings.
"The first week was a little stressful," she said. "I didn't want him to cry
- ever. Not even make a sound."
But over time, she relaxed and her baby turned into a morale booster for the
staff, she said.
"Babies just seem to cheer everyone up," Scranton added.
The nursing mother program went from pilot to permanent at the Arizona
Department of Health Services in October, said coordinator Mary Ellen Rivero.
As a registered dietician, Rivero and others in the Office of Nutrition and
Chronic Disease Prevention Services initiated the program because "as
nutritionists, we feel breast-feeding is very important for both the baby and
mother," she said.
They modeled the program after several counties in Arizona, including
Maricopa, Pinal, Coconino and others that allow returning mothers to bring
their newborns to work after maternity leave.
The state health department's guidelines say that if returning mothers aren't
giving their babies formula, they may bring their newborns to work until they
are 4 months old with prior approval from work supervisors.
Extensions can be granted until babies are 6 months old depending on a
mother's work schedule and a baby's personality, Rivero said.
In some divisions of the health department, mothers can use a breast-feeding
room. But Rivero's staff proved the policy could work even for employees in
cubicles. One nursing mom would turn her back to the cubicle entrance, while
another draped a curtain for privacy, she said.
"What we're finding is that babies are no problem," she said.
"It's much easier than anyone anticipated."
The department also established a Web site, www.gobreastmilk.org, to share
its policies with other employers considering such a program.
Although mothers who have participated in the program have had "very quiet or
contented babies," Rivero said she heard of one Maricopa County working
mother who quit her job after her baby developed colic.
In some cases, working moms cut their maternity leaves to return to work
early because of the program, but Rivero said she doesn't advertise that as a
side benefit.
"We want moms to be good mothers and heal and take care of themselves," she
said.
Rivero said she once complimented Scranton on her nursing mom juggling act,
adding that breast-feeding is "so hidden in our culture and that's sad."
"She (Kelly) said, 'If I didn't nurse at meetings, I wouldn't get my job
done,' " Rivero said.
For her part, Scranton said the hardest part of bringing her son, now 6
months old, was lugging the baby bouncy seat to and from work.
But she added that the hassle was worth it. >>
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