Would it not be prudent to do something with What Happens to New Mothers and
Their Infants in hospital and out, rather than worry about how long they
spend there?
A hospital that isn't great at supporting BF the first 24-72 hours is
unlikely to do any better in 96.
There is nothing magical about the building itself, and it is a d---ed
expensive way of housing healthy people.  Gabrielle Palmer,in 'The Politics
of Breastfeeding', asserts that the institutionalization of maternity care
has never benefited breastfeeding.  It seems that the needs of institutions
are not compatible with the needs of newborns and their mothers, and that it
takes generations of trial and many errors before this is acknowledged.
Then, at last, measures can be taken to counteract the iatrogenic injuries
to normal feeding behavior.
Women should be able to choose where they want to spend the first days with
their new babies without having to choose between no help in a familiar
environment over which they have much control, and some help in an
unfamiliar environment over which they have little or no control.
What about community-based follow up, designed as if someone meant for it to
actually work?
Just a thought, but one worth trying, I believe.
Rachel Myr
a fan of home cooking and domestically produced infant food, in
Kristiansand, Norway

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