Well, my recent experience proves that you can never be too careful.  It's
been so long since any conf. that was planning to accept formula money
sponsorship asked me to speak (most people knowing my position on this) that
I neglected to be explicitily clear about it and showed up in a rather
remote location only to discover that both Mead Johnson and Ross were listed
on the conf. brochure as 'sponsors.'  Turns out they each only gave $100
each (a drop in the bucket of what this very nice conf. prob. cost) but that
little bit of money was enough to get their names out there and to
compromise the reputations of every speaker who was IBCLC.

It certainly put me in a difficult situation.  Because I was already there
before I learned of it, I privately informed the organizer (a very nice
person, by the way, who felt very embarrassed) that I would have to give the
money back if any of my fee came from the formula people.  She assured me
that my fee came entirely from bfg coalition funds.  I told her that I would
also have to publically disclaim any association (which I did before both my
talks) and that I would have to turn myself in for a disciplinary action to
IBCLC for being so careless as not to ask in advance about the funding.

My revenge will be that I took one of the little give-aways from the Mead
Johnson table; a little plastic brain model (that goes with a handout about
the superior brain development hype for the new formula.)  I'm going to make
a new teaching slide labeled:  This is what formula gives your baby:  A
little, plastic brain.

Barbara Wilson-Clay BSEd, IBCLC
Austin Lactation Associates
http://www.lactnews.com

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