> My prior
> comments regarding the overdispension of rental pumps from the hospital
> settings was intended for the purpose of supporting the field of lactation.
> Often times, due to the nature of staffing at hospitals, the decision to
> dispense pumps are not always made by an LC.
>
Thank you for making an important point. Yes, we have discussed the idea
that too many women think they need pumps in order to breastfeed. They
buy pumps prenatally, sometimes without consulting anyone, and certainly
without having a clear of idea of if, when and what kind of pumping they
will need to do. It is one more item on a list of unnecessary
expenditures: playpen, crib, change table, swing (I have put them in
order from absolutely useless to generally useless; different people
will have different ideas of where to put the pump -- on their list, on
the dept. store shelves and in their homes). Of course, when I talk to
mothers prenatally I put this in gentler terms, and suggest they wait
until the baby is born to see what they need. Unfortunately, everyone
else seems to be telling them that they won`t be able to shop once the
baby is born, and since a sling is the one thing they haven`t bought, it
may indeed be difficult.
I would suggest that it would be good practice to have every
breastfeeding mother go to a support group and talk to people who
understand what normal breastfeeding is about. At this group, she would
be able to get an idea of what kind of special circumstances warrant
consultation with an LC, medical attention, and the purchase or rental
of a pump. Many mothers don`t get to talk to anybody about
breastfeeding, let alone pumping. I think it would be good if every pump
came with a lactation consultant (preferably live-in).
Jo-Anne Elder-Gomes, IBCLC and veteran pumper.

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