“We’re failing our perinatal exclusive breastfeeding measures,[1] but I’m afraid there’s nothing we can do about it.”
This belief is surprisingly common among hospital quality managers - and I once believed it, too. But I’m happy to say that there are cost-effective solutions to improve an exclusive breastfeeding program regardless of the size or resources of the hospital.
I once heard a lactation consultant give her patient a firm talk about persistence. She explained, “Going forward from this starting point, if you do not have, it is because you do not ask; but if you keep trying, you will succeed.” She explained the importance of perseverance and consistently “asking” because it would cue all the hormones that would help provide milk to the new mother’s premature infant. The lactation cosultant equipped her patient with the knowledge and tools to be successful and both mom and baby flourished.
A lot of hospitals are in the same spot: We do not have, because we do not ask. We seem to think that all the resources for a successful breastfeeding program have “dried up.”
Yet, there are several approaches to improve exclusive breastfeeding programs that are achievable and inexpensive.
By Gayle Porter
