Hello,
In November I posted reply to someone asking about different
ways to support mothers in the community. I talked briefly
about the 'Breastfeeding Cafe' in my community and how it is a
partnership between the hospital's lactation team and the six
La Leche League Leaders in the community. I had a lot of
private emails asking for more information, how the
Breastfeeding Cafe works, and how it got started. It was so
close to Christmas and things got so busy, that I was never
able to answer many of those individual email inquires. I have
felt bad about it and wanted to take the time to answer some of
those questions now. If I don't answer any of your
curiosities, please ask them again, either on or off the list.
Also, I had several inquires about using these ideas, and
posts, and forwarding them to start similar community
programs...YES! Please use any of these ideas here to get
something like this started within your local task force or
community.
How It Started: Our community has a small, but active county
breastfeeding task force. The task force was started over ten
years ago by a LLL Leader. She invited her IBCLC and pump
rental friend, her co-Leader, and a representative from WIC.
It started around her kitchen table but now meets monthly at
the hospital. There are several LLL Leaders, WIC
representatives, other state representatives and members of the
hospital's lactation staff in attendance. In fall of 2006 the
task force conversation was focusing on how to encourage the
hospital RNs to refer breastfeeding mothers to community
support groups (ie La Leche League and the WIC group). The
head of the hospital's lactation team (IBCLC) suggested a
monthly lunch seminar with LLL Leaders speaking about
breastfeeding topics to mother/baby RNs, as a way to
familiarize them with LLL Leaders and the breastfeeding
knowledge LLL Leaders have, and the potential to share that
information with other professionals. It was then suggested
that these luncheon seminars be opened to all hospital staff,
not just RNs on the mother/baby floor.
Well from there it was decided that these "Lunch and Learn with
La Leche League" should be open to the public. The idea moved
to the drop-in Baby Cafe style format that was becoming quite a
popular topic on many breastfeeding Internet boards. For a
time, the hospital used the name "Baby Cafe" and considered
becoming an official UK Baby Cafe Charitable Trust location,
but after much discussion we have decided to drop the name
"Baby Cafe" as it is a registered trade mark and go with
Breastfeeding Cafe.
This January will be the one year anniversary of this drop-in
style cooperative venture between the local hospital and the
local La Leche League Leaders. Some things that we have
struggled with this past year included;
- Pressure to make the Cafe a weekly group rather than the
monthly group (which we have decided against doing because the
La Leche League Leaders cannot staff the Cafe as volunteers on
a weekly bases because of the other volunteer work the Leaders
do.
- How to learn to work together! Without having just one
person in charge of the direction of the Cafe, it is sometimes
a struggle to make decisions without angering either partner.
- Going with the hospital's administration directive and moving
the location to a more private hospital area because all of the
breastfeeding women might offend other hospital patients (don't
get me started on that!).
- Also another hospital's administration directive is to have a
discussion/education topic every month because the
administrators said very clearly that they didn't want
breastfeeding mothers to come just to socialize with one
another, but the LLL Leaders must lead a discussion topic
monthly.
About Discussion Topics: A November survey of the attending
mothers found that 90% enjoyed a discussion topic and didn't
care what it was about, just as long as it was informative and
pertained, loosely, to breastfeeding. We have discussed
nursing in public, teeth, the art of baby wearing, which
included a fashion show of the many types of baby carriers (the
mothers loved this!), starting solids, breastfeeding in public,
and will talk about breastfeeding and dental caries this month.
About Food: The hospital's lactation head (IBCLC) felt like
this venture was a budgeting priority for her department and
set aside funding to have sandwiches, cookies and bottled water
delivered to the room every month. It costs about $90/month
for two trays of sandwiches, cookies and bottled water.
About the Location: We were originally set to meet in the
hospital's lovely Solarium, but were moved from that location
after our first Breastfeeding Cafe last January. A hospital
administrator was worried about potential complaints from other
patients enjoying the Solarium, while breastfeeding women were
present, and it was a battle we decided not to fight. We were
moved down to a large auditorium, but only about 60% of the
time do we actually have the large room. The other 40% of the
time, the Breasfeeding Cafe is bumped to a small meeting room
down a long hallway where we struggle to fit 15 - 20 mothers
(and children) for the hour long Cafe. This is something we
are needing to work on.
About The Collaboration: One hesitation that LLL Leaders must
consider before joining any type of collaborative venture, such
as this, is that we can't put our name on any type of activity
that doesn't represent LLLI's Philosophies. We protect LLLI
reputation and name at this venue by always having at least one
Leader present at every Breastfeeding Cafe; we lead the
discussion topics so that we are able to interject LLLI
Philosophy statements at anytime during the discussion; and we
have a handout about LLLI and its Philosophies next to the
sign-in sheet. At the beginning of every Breastfeeding Cafe I
open the discussion by saying the following, "Welcome to the
Breastfeeding Cafe. This is a collaborative effort between the
hospital's lactation team and La Leche League. (Then I
introduce all of the Leaders present and all of the lactation
team present). We are all here because we want you to have a
successful breastfeeding relationship and meet all of your
breastfeeding goals. We will be discussing *blank* topic
today, but feel free to ask any breastfeeding questions you
might have brought with you today, even if it doesn't relate to
today's topic. Feel free to approach any of us, at any time,
with your questions because we are all here to help you, in any
way we can."
Not only are we working together to help breastfeeding mothers,
but we are building professional relationships across the
spectrum of lactation professionals. The mothers who attend
Breastfeeding Cafe have a chance to see the nurse that helped
them with their first latch, the IBCLC who helped them overcome
that big breastfeeding difficulty, the LLL Leader they called
in tears at 9pm because something just wasn't right, and that
other person who they keep hearing about who nurses a
three-year old, but in person doesn't seem that strange after
all.
Breastfeeding Cafe is a small pocket of time and space where
breastfeeding is actually the cultural norm and no one feels
out of place or isolated because they are breastfeeding.
It takes work, support and staffing by the hospital (and its
administrators) and the support and time donation of the LLL
Leaders who also run the Breastfeeding Cafe. We have touched
so many mothers through this venue. These are mothers who want
breastfeeding support but are unwilling to attend LLLI Series
Meeting (for whatever reasons) but are happy to go to a
"hospital supported breastfeeding activity". Many of the
mothers who first attended a Breastfeeding Cafe found LLL
Leaders to not be the zealots they heard about and most mothers
also begin attending LLLI Series Meetings after first coming to
Breastfeeding Cafe. We are receiving so much positive feedback
from these mothers that even the hospital's administrators are
softening to the idea of "actual breastfeeding women really
breastfeeding -openly- at their hospital". Its a true and
startling phenomenon to many older administrators, but they
seem to be warming to the idea a bit!
Sorry this post got so long winded. I just wanted to try and
answer all of the questions I received last November.
Hopefully this great idea will excuse my rabblings...
Michelle Swanson, LLLL
mother to three, tandem nursing two
Wyoming, USA
:-)
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