Hi Virginia,

I just read your post on pumps and would like to repeat what you said: if not necessary, don't introduce a pump.
I've been dealing with this issue regularly lately.
People phone me and say: "We have to get bf started, so we need a pump."
When I ask about the situation (not about the problem, but about the situation...), they often hardly understand me.
"Well, we have a baby and we need to pump!" I then go on to tell that for getting the bf started, you only need a well drinking baby.
"Yes, but production is not enough yet and we need to stimulate." Why not let the baby stimulate production, like we did thousands of years ago...?
They often just don't seem to trust the process and hcp's often send parents home with no policy suggestions, just the instruction to get a pump.
This really frustrates me, as it is a condescending way of 'supporting bf'. The dyad should be encouraged, not the use of the pump.
I now often say: "A pump can certainly be a good help, when things don't work out. It has to be accompanied by good policy, though. If good management is lacking, a pump can very well be hindering the process instead of stimulating it." This is usually a view that is hard to understand; I will probably have to explain it to regional collegues first, for they are the ones that have to grasp it in order to support well... ;-)

Bye,

Marianne Vanderveen IBCLC, Netherlands

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