Jean Macomber wrote:
> BUT, from personally observing patients and hearing their comments, I
> have also discovered that as new Moms they expect to be "taught" (to BF,
> to bathe the baby, take the temp, etc.) And many expect to be taught THE
> ONE RIGHT WAY to do whatever it is.

Good points, Jean.  When researching postwar (1945-65) infant feeding advice
for my Master's thesis, one of the issues which struck me was how much the
repetition of learning-by-doing during the 7-10-day hospital stay stuck in
the women's memories.  Unfortunately, this was with incorrect advice (feed
only 4-hourly, limit feeds to 2-3 minutes each side initially, give only 10
minutes each side after the first few days, even in normal circumstances
express after *every* feed, and so on).  With *accurate* advice by staff who
know how breastfeeding works and know to watch the baby, how much more could
be done through repetitive learn-by-doing teaching if hospital stays were
longer!  In this ideal situation, there is the chance to give this sort of
education, which is likely to "stick" with the mother.
    Of course, where maternity hospitals are *not* supportive breastfeeding
in their policies and practice, getting out of there quickly may be an
advantage - provided the mother has good support and knows to contact an LC,
support group or peer counsellor.  However, she doesn't have that 24-hour
support/teaching over several days.
             Virginia

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