Hi all,

Actually, there is  little sunshine at the end of this day-- Lactnet!  Today,
I was cruising through my own backyard (aka "the clinic") and I noticed that
there was another "board" put up by S_____ Advertising (a company that puts
up posters in a nice permanent frame).  We have had one for several years
that changes periodically and had general baby info along with a little
advertisement from an insurance company for life insurance.  Well, what
cought my attention today was that the NEW board devoted 1/2 of the poster
space (at least 12 x 14) to our favorite ABM company (you know, the one who
does NOT direct advertise)  There was a picture of a mother and baby with
good entrainment and below a picture of several of the product cans with
words to the effect "XXXXXXXX, the formula  doctors recommend most often"

As soon as I could find the nurse manager, I asked her if she had seen the
poster and she replied "Yes, I ordered it!"  Another nurse in the area said
something to the effect that she also had a part in it and that since most of
our moms who breastfeed also give formula that she didn't see any problem
with it.  Naturally I said that I did object and that I disagreed entirely
with it.  Being "not in charge" and feeling thoroughly bulldozed, I retreated
to my office to heal my wounds (and fantasize my options-- including, I might
add, a papal decree that Catholic hospitals may not promote ABM!)  Well, I
got involved with my next patient and was totally surprised (its a miracle!!)
to get a phone call from the nurse manager who said that she had looked at
the poster and was planning to have it removed tomorrow because the ad was so
conspicuous, the info was covered elsewhere and that the patients with 6th
grade reading ability would think that our doctors advocated formula feeding
(how about that!!).

Sooooo, my question to all of you is  "Do any of your institutions have
hospital-wide policies on displaying formula advertising?   If so, who did
it, how was it done and what is the policy?"

Also, an aside.  The same formula company now has breastfeeding "support"
coolers to handout instead of the formula diaper bags.  We received a call at
our hospital from a desperate (and growing increasingly irate) new mother
(who delivered at the competition) who wanted to know if we had one to give
to her because she had called the formula company and they told her they had
shipped them to us!   Puuuullllleeeaaase!

Engaging my parachute to jump off the soap box!
Queen Corporate Conscience  aka Martha, the Maniacal Marauder and Protector
of the Nutritional Truth, who honed her eye teeth to a razor edge of the
sedate strategies of Linda Smith and Alison Hazelbaker