In a message dated 11/17/01 8:37:03 PM, [log in to unmask] writes:
<< I believeyou about this doc being anti-bf (maybe not intentionally, just
ignorance?),we have one who advocates very early solids, only q4h feeds, and
water
inbetween. >>
It is very clear to me that there are some fabulous doctors on this board--
I wish just one of them lived in my community. But, I have noticed very
frequent comments lately about doctors in our various communities who are
"well-intentioned" or "trying to support bf" or whatever, but are "just
ignorant". If a cardiologist was ignorant about proper procedure to prevent
excessive blood loss, but well-intentioned when he performed open heart
surgery, what would people say? What of a midwife or OB who didn't know
emergency procedures for cord prolapse in labor? Some things are just the
basic knowldege of a given field. IMO, bf is the foundation of pediatrics.
Yet, there is no recourse for peds who are "just ignorant" about bf. I think
partly it is b/c we (bf advocates) are so careful not to offend that we don't
hold them accountable. It is completely unacceptable to me that I can spend
my time to see a mother, find an easily solved problem like tongue-tie
(obvious heart-shape this time) and then wait w/ uncertainty until the mother
asks her ped his opinion. If he is "just ignorant", he isn't likely to say
"hmmm, I am ignorant about this, but willing to learn" He is likely to say,
"This is ridiculous, you don't need to do this, etc." (What is the
possibility that the very same doc who missed a tongue-tie in the newborn
exam is going to support clipping the frenulum now?) And the mother will
usually follow the doctor's "orders" even if it spells the demise of bf'ing.
The "just ignorant" doctor will accept this as a reasonable outcome. No
accountability. Yes, I can work on educating, and I do. But there are a lot
of doctors in my community and I often come across peds I don't know. It
could take a very long time and many babies lost to bottles before change
comes. IMO, we need to be far more unaccepting of these "just ignorant"
doctors. I saw a mom today whose baby clearly needed chiropractic
(fortunately, she went w/o calling the ped, who so far has given her terrible
advice, but I don't think my hopes for bf success should depend on the mother
choosing to go around her doctor or circumstances dictating that she happens
to have a chiro appt before her ped appt). Everytime I see a baby who needs
chiro or a frenulum clipped, I get a terrible feeling in the pit of my
stomach, knowing that the solution is so simple, but all depends on the
open-mindedness vs ignorance of a given ped. So, for any given baby, his
life-long well-being may all come down to which ped his mother's friends
happened to refer her to. I am just not willing to accept this as the best we
can do.
Jennifer Tow, IBCLC, CT, USA--really frustrated this week
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