Hi Cynthia, I think the scenario you bring up is an important one...I think
it is important to be a team...the physician and the lactation consultant.
When a child is quite ill, it can be hard for parents to believe it,
especially when they desperately want to nurse the child and nursing is not
going well. I personally feel that the last thing the parents need to hear
when their child is sick in the hospital is two different opinions!! I
think getting a second opinion is reasonable when the parents seek it out
when they are unhappy about a practitioners advice. But this situation
would be very frustrating for the parents, and can lead to delays in
decision-making, which is dangerous for an ill child. I very much see
hospital medicine and outpatient medicine as being different for the very
reason that everything gets really confusing for the family in the hospital
when events happen so fast. As a ring leader for patients in the hospital
setting, I try to make sure that communication is clear between myself,
consultants and the family/patient. Therefore, I feel the lactation
consultant should have spoken to the attending physician ahead of
time.-Anne Eglash MD