In the discussions about getting the "right" pumps available for moms who need to pums to establish their milk supply (e.g. for a premie), the assumption seems to be that electric is the only way to go. There are a couple alternatives that haven't been mentioned: 1 - Pedal operated pumps. Medela has (or had) a foot pedal that could be used with the set-up for Lactina. At a recent ILCA Conference I saw one that was supposed to be usable with any of the major pump brand kits. The cost would be far less than rental. I heard of one clinic that loaned the pedal pump for a $25 deposit which was returned when mom brought the pump back. If the pump wasn't returned, the $25 nearly covered the cost of a replacement. 2 - Hands-free pumping setups. Medela has a set-up with rubber bands and a special bra. I have seen others less complicated (one is "Hands Free With TLC") which consist of a wide elastic band mom wears around her chest. There are slits that hold the flanges in place. Then she can operate the plunger with her hands in the same way the Lactina pump does with the machine. (I don't think other brands use a similar arrangement, but if they do, it would work for them too.) If it is a hospitalized baby, I would assume mom would already have the accessory kit, so the only cost is for the band (around $35 or so). (Note: I have no financial interest in any of the above-mentioned products.) Winnie *********************************************** To temporarily stop your subscription: set lactnet nomail To start it again: set lactnet mail (or digest) To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet All commands go to [log in to unmask] 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