Comments on: Thoughtful Thursday! “Don’t Let Them Bully You.”

By: Shannon

Shannon — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 15:01:37 +0000

This was me. My son was under the care of the pediatric staff at this point and so the OB had nothing to do with his care. He was giving me words of encouragement and warning me that the nurses would likely try to bully me into using formula. He was absolutely right, too. I was told that if I didn’t supplement with formula that they would send me home without him. Fortunately I had an awesome lactation consultant who worked her hiney off trying to help me avoid supplementation. In the end, my son and I went home together and my milk came in as soon as we got home. He’s been in the 95th percentile of height and weight ever since and we’re still nursing at nearly 26 months!

By: Kat

Kat — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 16:24:22 +0000

How much clout does the OB have with the nursery staff?

I may be mistaken, but I think once the baby is out they are under the “jurisdiction” of the pediatrician, not the OB. So while the OB gives orders about the mother’s care, medications, and treatment, the nursery staff might be answering to another doctor.

And yes, I TOTALLY agree, the nurses need thorough education and accountability to encourage breastfeeding. It’s possible the doctor was in the process of going through the proper channels to do that, we don’t know. But absolutely, telling the mom there’s *currently* a problem with the nursing staff and to be on the lookout for it was 100% awesome.

To continue with the school bully analogy, we go to the teachers, the principal, the administrators, the other kid’s parents if they’re known to your family, and insist the situation be addressed. But in the meantime we encourage our children to stand up for themselves. That’s part of the process, to tell them they are worth standing up for, and they are strong enough to speak up for themselves too!

By: Jennifer

Jennifer — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 16:14:58 +0000

Jane: I have a stupid question: why was the doctor telling the pateint not to let them bully her rather than leaving explicit orders with the nursery staff and all the nurses, “This baby is not to be given ANY formula”? And then going to the head of the maternity unit if they disregarded?Would I be a good mom if my son said, “Some kids at school are threatening me?” and I replied,”Well, don’t let them bully you”?The doctor needed to do more here. If the doctor knew there was going to be a problem, t he doctor needed to leave orders to head that off and and make the hospital responsible for following them.

I believe it's because the baby is no longer considered the OB's patient at this point, but I agree that the child's pediatrician could do something like this. And certainly the OB could suggest or encourage it, but he's not likely to try pushing orders about someone else's patient. And, yes, I get that the the well-being of his patient and the pediatrician's patient is connected, but this is how they would likely see it.

By: Jane

Jane — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 12:10:10 +0000

I have a stupid question: why was the doctor telling the pateint not to let them bully her rather than leaving explicit orders with the nursery staff and all the nurses, “This baby is not to be given ANY formula”? And then going to the head of the maternity unit if they disregarded?

Would I be a good mom if my son said, “Some kids at school are threatening me?” and I replied,”Well, don’t let them bully you”?

The doctor needed to do more here. If the doctor knew there was going to be a problem, t he doctor needed to leave orders to head that off and and make the hospital responsible for following them.

By: Lauren

Lauren — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 04:48:20 +0000

How awesome!!! Love hearing about a dr who knows their stuff.

By: Dou-la-la

Dou-la-la — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 04:37:45 +0000

HURRAH. More of these guys/dolls, please.

By: Mary

Mary — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 04:32:54 +0000

This is encouraging and reassuring! It is so good to know that there are OB’s out there that know their stuff and care about their patients. Thoughtful Thursdays are great!

By: Stephanie

Stephanie — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 04:27:44 +0000

Just beautiful! I felt so fortunate that even though they gave my son formula after a C-section (before I’d even gotten to hold him!), he never had significant trouble nursing. Just the usual challenges trying to latch.

My most recent baby they got a little concerned about her weight loss, which was very near the max allowed, but never quite to where formula was insisted upon.

Then she put on about 2 lb. a month the first four months. So glad they didn’t mess things up on me there.

By: Krista

Krista — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 01:00:44 +0000

I could kiss this OB! It’s sad he or she has to give that type of encouragement, but kudos to the OB! That cheers up my day!

By: Molly

Molly — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 00:23:00 +0000

Excellent! Finally a hospital birth professional who understands that babies are supposed to lose weight in the first few days of life, waiting for the milk to come it. I hope the OB also told her to make sure to give the baby the colostrum, which is high in calories and nutrients and will sustain the baby until the milk properly comes in. Never allow nurses to give your baby formula if you are going to exclusively breastfeed.
When my son was in the NICU they disregarded my orders to never give formula (or a pacifier) and to call me in my hospital room to come breastfeed when my son woke up. They did that ONCE, I rip those NICU nurses a new one, and from then on I was called for every feeding until I had pumped enough to leave in the fridge.