Betsy: I think you hit the nail on the head when you referenced that all the negitive comments about the Ameda pumps and the problems seen all came from a competetor rep. One suggestion I would give is ask that rep. to show you the documented proof of their negitive statements. I've called that bluff before over the same issues and surprisingly the rep could never remember to get that info to me.. My facility chose the Hollister pumps for multiple reasons:, 10 year warranty, built in battery pack, adjustable cycle and pressure, ease of use, reasonable cost, etc. Staff and patients love this pump much more than the older SMB/Classics or the lactina and we've had no problems. Period. Not our postpartum area or NICU or Peds Unit. Everyone loves the pumps and even though the new Symphony looks nice, I have a major problem with the price tag. We also use the Hollister kits instead of the Universals for some of the same reasons,: ease of assembly/cleaning,cost and most of all, its the ONLY kit with FDA approproval for contamination concerns ( major risk management issue for us hospital baced LC's). Contrary to the other companys reps "reports" we have not experienced one single diaphram tear or problem with the kits . Yeah, with the Universal Kit you can get a handpump but in a cost containment era the kit is too overpriced for our needs and we had problems with filter contamination/replacement frequency. All in all, I think its more a matter of what YOUR individual hospital and service needs are. Pumps are a market also and sometimes the threat of losing a customer can also cause breastpump reps to pull tactics that may not be ones we'd hope to see. On both sides- I'd always ask both reps to put the print where their mouth is and not verbally talk about the other models problems- make them give it in print. If there were fires or etc issues they should have been reported and documented, otherwise its just plain snake oil sales techniques. For my two cents, the Hollister set up works great, is cost effective and is no problem to use. Medelas fine also- it just depends on YOUR needs. Good luck, Lisa Jones *********************************************** To temporarily stop your subscription: set lactnet nomail To start it again: set lactnet mail (or digest) To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet All commands go to [log in to unmask] The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html