Dear Maureen,

As a tnurse eacher, as a nurse clinical specialist, and as a member of a
regional committee for breastfeeding promotion, I would say  I have been
trying to convinve nurses about the following:

Detrimental practice # 1: separating mom and baby for almost any
reason....

Solution: consider that mom and baby need to stay together all the time
and that the professional is an intruder in this relationship...All care
and exams should be conducted at the mom/baby's bedside, unless baby's
life is threatened....


Detrimental practice # 2: absolutely trying to have mom get more sleep
while she is hospitalized (which , everyone knows, is almost impossible
anyway...) and for this reason, remove baby from the room and feed him
with formula...

Solution: close nurseries except for neonatal intensive care....I know
nurses become creative when they have to organize a mom/baby environment
for mom to be able to sleep when there is no more nursery...


Detrimental practice # 3: listen to all medical doctors's orders without
questioning them...

Solution: become so knowledgeable on breastfeeding matters that everyone
will turn to you for answers when in doubt...and you can also defend
your point of view...what a wonderful world it would be if everyone
becomes so knowledgeable that we can discuss issues and what is best for
mom/baby dyad!


In Gatineau, we have been trying to do this for the last four years now,
and we are being support ed by the regional committee for breastfeeding
promotion....and it works! Well...most of the time!!! Good luck. Louise


Louise Dumas, R.N., M.S.N., PhD
Professor-researcher in Nursing Sciences
University of Quebec at Hull
(Western Quebec)

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