Julie Taylor asks what other institutions have replaced the advertising bags with, so that breastfeeding mothers don't feel left out by not getting a 'free' diaper bag. First, I think it is meaningless to ban the bags only to mothers who have initiated breastfeeding in the hospital. Why should any mothers view it as positive that the institution in which they have given birth is in a mutual back-scratching relationship with one particular company? Should they not be concerned that the information they get is impartial, and based on factual information? Maybe a mother who isn't breastfeeding would think twice about it if she realized that the hospital is not giving her a swell present as a token of genuine affection when it foists this bag on her, it is fulfilling a Faustian obligation to a third party whose interests have virtually no overlap with her interests or those of her baby. You might want to find out where the bags are actually made too. Would the board be comfortable handing them out if it turned out they were sewn by child slaves in Asia, for example? I am not sure I want to know the answer to that last question. How would the hospital's standing in the community be affected if it were to come out in the press that the reason they are using Brand X product in their NICU is not because it has been documented to be the best, but because they cut the best deal with that company in exchange for selling out mothers in the maternity unit? The diaper bag is not free. It is more like a Trojan horse. And it is paid for by every person who has ever bought that brand of milk powder. You can bet your own paycheck that the company whose logo is on it has calculated the cost-benefit ratio and found that it comes out in their favor, along with the trinkets and snacks they provide to maternity care staff. How about a congratulatory card on which is printed the cost savings to them and their insurance company in the first year of the breastfed baby's life, with a simple explanation of how much the 'free' bag really costs the recipients? And how about a card to put into the advertising bags that says 'We hope this token of our gratitude to you for continuing to market the product our hospital uses will make up for the increased expenses for health care incurred throughout your child's life because you are using that product yourself.' Probably wouldn't fly with the board. But it would be fun to try. Rachel Myr Kristiansand, Norway *********************************************** Archives: http://community.lsoft.com/archives/LACTNET.html To reach list owners: [log in to unmask] Mail all list management commands to: [log in to unmask] COMMANDS: 1. To temporarily stop your subscription write in the body of an email: set lactnet nomail 2. To start it again: set lactnet mail 3. To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet 4. To get a comprehensive list of rules and directions: get lactnet welcome