Some go for sale at a swap meet. At least that is what I am told. NONE have
disappeared in the 2 1/2 years since I and 2 other IBCLCs went to work in
our hosp. (she says smugly...) But we have found the heavy nuts missing;
the ones that secure the pump to the trolley. Mostly, I think it was
Housekeeping who were determined to clean it properly by removing the clear
plastic dome. Once in a while that is necessary, but usually not.

Some go home for personal use because it's too expensive to buy or rent.
Even medical staffers to the "ohmigawd!" when I suggest $55 to $65 per
month rentals. But I remind them that formula costs at least $100 to $200
per month IF baby doesn't need something "special".

We have 14 pumps on trolleys. Two are secured in the employees' pumping
room. One floats in/around NICU, one in L&D, and one on the Pediatrics
floor. The rest are on Post Partum. We wheel them everywhere in the
hospital: MICU, CICU, Burn Unit, PICU, Med-Surg, even the Psych Unit.

We don't have $$$ for electronic devices but we do have a check-out sheet
with a dry-erase marker and a 4" high number taped to the large flat end of
each one. We do go on periodic scavenger hunts to locate misplaced pumps.
We find them locked in small conference rooms, the Soiled Linen closet,
behind a curtain in a patient room, packed tightly with stored out-of-use
equipment, etc.....

BTW: we have our own vacuum gauge and we regularly check out the vacuum at
the "business" end. Our Bio-Med Repair follows mfg instructions and checks
the vacuum internally, but that's not where it counts for mom. We put a
little tape on each pump with the low and high vacuum numbers. If they go
too high or low, we send them for repair.

Phyllis


> Where do they go? How many other floors/units in a hospital have
> need of breast pumps? Pediatrics? Are there employees who
> want to pump for their babies at home?
> In either case, is it worthwhile to invest in a couple of
> other pumps, strategically placed so that everyone who
> needs them can have access to them?
>   I'm coming in on the middle of this conversation, so
> please forgive me if I'm missing the point.
> Naomi Bar-Yam

--- Phyllis Adamson, IBCLC
--- Glendale, AZ, USA
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