I think you hit it exactly on the head, Kathy!

Although as a private-practice LC, I should be grateful for what I think of
as "the head-jammers"! They account for a good chunk of my business! I tend
to get a cluster of calls all at once (usually after a week-end) with very
similar problems - "a perfectly normal baby" that won't latch on - and will
hear reports from mother after mother that "the nurse really grabbed his
head and just jammed him onto my breast".

I picture there being some particular "Jamming Jane" (kind of like a Typhoid
Mary) up there at the hospital. I get reports of "the nurse with the red
fingernails". And I absolutely shouldn't laugh about it, because it's dead
serious. (Our local hospital does not have a certified LC on staff, nor is
there a position for one, despite the fact that NY State has a requirement
that every OB unit have a "breastfeeding specialist".)

And Kathy's explanation of why/how this goes on (the time & discharge
criteria pressures, etc. are absolutely right-on. AS one who's been there, I
can testify to that.

Cathy Bargar RN IBCLC
Ithaca NY

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