Here at St Joseph Hospital we are a designated “Baby Friendly Hospital”
(the only one in Nashua and second in the state of NH). The designation is provided by UNICEF and the World Health Organization after meeting the highest level of care and support for breast-feeding mothers. In order to receive this designation all of our nurses need to be trained to help our breast-feeding mother’s and we want all of our new moms to have a positive breast-feeding experience.
In order to provide a positive experience we start at the beginning with you. We offer a “Preparing to Breastfeed” class the second Wednesday of every month from 7-9pm, which you can take at any time prior to your due date. The class is taught by our Lactation Consultant. The class covers the many benefits to you and your baby, how to prepare your breast, nutrition while nursing and how and when to breast-feed, and any special situations (breast-feeding multiples). Any questions you have can be answered at that class as well.
During your stay, you also will have help breast-feeding from the nurse assigned to you each day and our a Certified Lactation Consultant. We recommend feeding your baby by watching for feeding cues which you learn by rooming in with your baby or at least every 2-3 hours during the day for the first 2 weeks and no longer than every 4 hours at night (a minimum of 8x/24hrs). We do not recommend timing feedings but watching again for signals from your baby as to the end of the feeding, but usually some feedings will last for 10-20 minutes or as long as 40 minutes depending on your baby.
Our support does not end when you leave the hospital! We have several ways to help you. We have a Mother’s Hotline (595-3162) and Newborn Hotline (595-3167) which can be used 24/7 (either number) and we will be glad to answer any questions you have. Our Lactation Consultant calls all of our patients, whether they are breast or bottle feeding, within the first week and continues to call as long as the patient wishes.
We also offer Outpatient Lactation visits privately with our Lactation Consultant if you are having any problems. This is usually done by a referral either by your baby’s doctor or by your doctor. The Lactation Consultant is usually available Monday- Friday 8-2pm. You can also email our Lactation Consultant at tdonofrio@sjh-nh.org and she will respond to your questions on her next work day.
