Dear Chris,
The first home visit I ever did was in the evening, and as I was driving to
the couple's house, I reflected how risky this profession might be: I had
agreed to visit someone deep in the suburbs of Philadelphia, a person I had
never seen, and all on the blind faith that both she and I were legitimately
who we claimed to be...and that no one would get harmed or ripped off by this
contact.  Based on a phone conversation, she trusted me and I trusted her.

She was a NICU nurse who had come home two days after a C-section with her
baby, who was a good size but a tad early.  He had been nursing "OK" in the
hospital but as the milk surge hit he had no idea what to do with the breast.
 The dad was on his last night of call as a veterinary school intern, so he
wouldn't be home to help her.

I found the house--a one-room cabin on a horse farm--in the dark.  The baby
latched on and fed fine with some positioning help, and mom and baby went to
sleep on the only bed---a big futon on the floor.  I settled down in a
recliner with their huge Maine coon cat on my lap and we all slept until near
dawn, when the baby woke up and nursed again.  I headed for home soon after
that but arranged to come back later in the day for a load of manure, which
the new dad helped me shovel into the back of my station wagon.  And that's
how I got started in private practice.

I wish home visits were always that much fun.

Chris Mulford

             ***********************************************
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