Had a dad (Asian) call the other day for a pump rental. When I
inquired about the situation he said the baby was 4 weeks old and
looking jaundiced so the private pedi suggested taking him off BM for
"a week or 2!" AAARRRGGGGHHHH! When I asked about the bili level he
said no lab work had been done since the baby was born. I'm curious
how the pedi could diagnosis BM jaundice without labs to rule out
other causes (many of them quite serious), how she would monitor any
improvement and why she thought it would take a week or 2 to resolve.
I have worked for a large HMO for 16+ years and we have an
outstanding pediatric department where everyone keeps their skills
and knowledge up-to-date and none of my docs would get away with this
kind of practice.
To balance this out though: Yesterday when I was making discharge
rounds a 24-hr old baby had refused to latch since birth. He checked
out fine but starting to look a little dry. The parents were very
committed to BF so I showed them how to cup feed (the baby perked
right up and dad was thrilled),started mom on the EBP and left an
order for no bottles/no pacifiers. I thought the night shift would
sabotage me as usual. The dad decided to stay all night and did the
feedings. First thing this morning the little guy went right to the
breast and nursed like a champ! Happy baby, happy parents and  very
happy me.

Linda - who despairs of private pediatricians and adores new daddies.