Gimme a Break!
by Kate Kahn - 29th May 2007
By now you've heard that some hospitals around the country are trying to ban those starter kit bags that hospitals give out to new moms---the ones with a little sample of infant formula, diapers, pacifiers, rattles etc. in them. Their theory? That those bags will influence a woman to not breastfeed. That in itself is ridiculous. Most women don't decide whether to breastfeed based on a bag they're given when they leave the hospital. Indeed, most have made the decision as to how they're going to feed their child long before they get to the hospital to give birth. Give women more credit please! But that's actually not why I'm writing today.
Today's thoughts stem from a situation that's beyond ironic.
A television station in Wisconsin reports that a woman who wanted to breastfeed her child at the hospital left in tears after feeling intimidated. She was there for an appointment, when her youngest of six children ( all of whom she has breastfed) needed to eat. So she started to breastfeed. Apparently she was told they'd find her a private room. That's when things got sticky. From the station's story:
"Then we got out in the hall and a nurse said there're people coming. The man leading me turned right around and was very close to me. I told him I didn't mind and he said 'other people do.' I tried to walk by and he wouldn't let me and that's when I started to cry. He was very close, I felt very intimidated."
What's wrong with this scenario? How about the man, who just happened to be the director of the radiology department--no low man on the totem pole---saying that other people minded if she breastfed in front of them. You've GOT to be kidding me! A hospital employee, a doctor no less, intimidating a new mom. And on top of that, Wisconsin is one of the few states that has a law on the books allowing moms to breastfeed in all public places. If hospitals want to talk the talk, they need to walk the walk.
Give me a break!
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