Dear Rosemarie: Although I was never in the position of having to take night call when my children were 5 months old, I know of many mothers who have done so successfully. The best way is to build a supply of frozen breastmilk for use while she takes call. During call, although it can get hairy at times, there is usually some time during which she could express. Many on call rooms have refrigerators, so she could even store her milk there (how about the pantry on one of the patient floors? Should be no problem, if she labels it well.) Even if she can't store her milk, she can express for comfort and prevention of plugged ducts and mastitis. Her schedule seems to allow a fair amount of flexibility. Some residents have breastfed with every second or third night on call. Even if she doesn't have the motivation for expressing her milk, it seems possible for her to continue nursing when at home, and supplementing while away. Good luck in counselling her. Physicians who have successfully combined breastfeeding and work can act as excellent role models for their patients. I hope Deena Zimmerman doesn't mind my paraphrasing what she tells pregnant women concerned about having to wean because of work: something to the effect that "if I could do it with my residency schedule, so can you". Alicia. [log in to unmask]