Patti's Story: A Coordinated
Health Care System
Sometimes a glimpse into
how other societies address breastfeeding sheds light on our own practices
and assumptions. Patti, below has two sons, the first born in England, the
second in the United States. She attributes her initial breastfeeding
success, in part, to the health care system that was available to her as a
resident of England, an experience that offers a direct contrast with her
experience in the U.S.
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About a week after my first son was born, I had a few evenings where he was
fussing and hard to settle. Even though nursing seemed to be going fine, I
started to wonder, “Is he fussy because I’m not doing something right?”
Fortunately, I had several places to go for answers.
The
health service included this incredible support system consisting of home
visits and telephone calls from the midwife and home visits for ten days
following the baby’s birth. That, in turn, was followed by home visits from
a health visitor - a nurse who works in an educational capacity and handles
such things as well-baby checks and immunizations. There was a lot of
coordination and you didn’t just get dropped by the midwife after the
birth. Someone would stop by my house or call me almost daily. You could
also visit them at the local health clinic, where they ran free courses.
And you always had your General Practitioner (GP), whom you saw during
pregnancy and who worked out of the same clinic. There was also a
breastfeeding clinic, open five days a week, with three nurses who
specialized in breastfeeding issues. You could just show up and someone
would evaluate your techniques and talk to you about what you could do.
In
my case, the nurse explained things I had never thought of before,
particularly regarding how to position the baby’s head. I was holding him
so his head was lowered, causing his chin to be too close to his chest. By
tilting his head back farther, he would have an easier time sucking and
swallowing. She said what I was doing wasn’t horrible, but with her
suggestions my son was able to nurse more efficiently and comfortably. A
week later, when he was a little fussy again, I wanted to make sure I was
still doing it right and was able to check in. I didn’t even have to make
an appointment. It couldn’t have been easier and it was so helpful!
Three years later, when my second son was born in upstate New York, there
was no connection between the people involved in the birth and the people
involved in breastfeeding. Once I left the hospital I didn’t hear from
anyone in the midwife’s office for a solid two weeks. I probably could have
gotten help from the pediatrician’s office, but there is a big difference
between scheduling an appointment versus having a system in place designed
to provide easy access.
Having that drop-in clinic was so powerful. I have no doubt that if I’d had
a problem here, I would have had more of a struggle to make nursing work.
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