Not breastfeeding friendly, nurses are rude.
Our son and our daughter were both born at Seton on 38th street. They claim to be breastfeeding friendly- I daresay, that is in phrase only. NO problems with our daughter's birth there 2.5 years before. For our youngest son, what a change. While they updated the rooms, they need to do the same with the attitudes and the beliefs held by the nurses.
Our son was born at 8:00 pm. I didn't get him back until 12:15 am. At that time, they came back with him and said that his glucose was low and that we needed to supplement with formula. I was stunned and responded that he hadn't even had a chance to nurse yet. Shortly thereafter, another nurse came in with 2 pre-made bottles of formula and asked us which we preferred. Neither was my response- again, after I refused the first time. I have breastfed 2 other babies exclusively and knew that he only needed to nurse and he would be fine. They treated me so badly for asking that we try to breastfeed first. He nursed frequently that night and was fine by morning. The next day, he had jaundice. Again, they pushed formula. Again, I said no. They were annoyed and treated me very badly for my choices. I told them that jaundice can be normal and that he was nursing frequently. We stayed an additional night in the hospital and he was fine. I didn't see a lactation consultant until the second day in the hospital- she wasn't summoned though I had requested one. When I had asked about syringe feeding instead of bottles- they had no idea why I would ask such a thing. I didn't want to impede the breastfeeding. They didn't seem to know anything about the natural course of breastfeeding. Frustrated, I spent a good deal of my time caring for my own baby and feeling NO support. Grateful for my experiences with my other 2 children, I wonder what happens to new moms who do not have that experience and are pushed into formula? While this hospital claims to be breastfeeding friendly, they are not. Their first course of action when there are issues is to push formula.
Pros: Labor and delivery nurses are wonderful
Cons: Nurses are rude, not breastfeeding friendly, lack of support
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