In a message dated 11/13/2003 6:11:48 PM Eastern Standard Time,
[log in to unmask] writes:
~~What do you do when you (the LC) calls the mom and you leave a message on
her machine but she doesn't call you back?
Do you try again? And how many times do you keep calling back if she doesn't
return your call?
What would be too intrusive vs. the ethical standards of needing to follow
up with moms?~~
i'm not an LC, but i am a follow up bfing counselor for a major hosp in the
detroit metro area. the bulk of my counseling moms is via phone.
when they don't call me back, i wait a few days to a week and call them
again. i call at diff times of the day. i call three times before turning their
forms back in to the hospital. i often have as many as 25 moms per month so i
really can't afford to call more than this. by the 3rd call, i say something
like,
"hi, this is jacqui from the hosp again - i've been assigned as your bfing
follow up counselor and am just calling for a quick update on how nursing your
baby(ies) is going. if you could call me back so i can get your paperwork
completed, i'd really appreciate it.'
the prior 2 calls, i don't mention the paperwork. even though it's just a
bfing assessment and follow up documentation form, they seem to get the message
that the hosp really is keeping track and would like their cooperation.
if i get the feeling they already switched to formula, i say 'how FEEDING
your baby is going' so at least they may still call me back and i can get the
form completed and possibly explore relactating w/ them.
if a mom has twins, i will follow up more than 3 times, letting her tell me
when she doesn't need me to keep calling and leave her w/ my #. if a mom is
having probs, i will keep calling til the prob is resolved, then leave her w/ my
#. i like to try and space the calls so i still am calling when a mom returns
to work. if all is relatively calm, this means i call once a month and rely on
her to contact me in b/t calls. if i get her (i get them imm after giving
birth to 2 wks after) and she's already gone to formula and i convince her to
get the baby back to breast, i stick with it until the baby is completely back
to breast. one mom took 6 mos to get there and i kept calling weekly and then
bi-weekly, tapering down to monthly for the whole 6 mos.
i'm not sure i completely understand your question about what would be too
intrusive ethically...i feel that fine line happening when they tell me abruptly
they have switched to formula and i gently prod for why, how's it going, are
you happy, would you be interested in relactating, do you know the risks
involved w/ formula use? some moms get pretty irate and i have been hung up on,
asked never to call again, etc... but i have also helped no less than 5 moms this
year get the baby back to exclusive breastmilk, so as long as i don't get any
real complaints from my pgm coordinator, i figure it's worth it. otherwise, i
feel i really do have an ehtical obligation to the baby (and mom!) to probe a
little deeper than others might - so many of these moms were simply
un/misinformed and are very grateful i pushed the boundary a tad. anyway, hope this is
along the lines of what you were asking and that i haven't gone off on a
tangent!
~jacqui gruttadauria
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