Figure. The milk room, Mothers’ Milk Bureau, Children’s Welfare Association, New York City, 1930s, where breast milk donations were collected under careful supervision. Photo from the AJN archives.
By Jacob Molyneux, senior editor
Today’s post was going to consist solely of links to a few posts by nurse bloggers that seemed worth your attention. But first, since everyone is tweeting about it this morning:
Breast milk sharing. Breast milk purchased or otherwise obtained via the Web can be tainted, according to a New York Times article today summarizing a new study published in Pediatrics. Money quote:
The report found that breast milk bought from two popular Web sites was often contaminated with high levels of bacteria, including, in a few instances, . The amounts detected in some samples were sufficient to sicken a child.
It so happens that AJN covered breast milk sharing just last year in an AJN Reports article called “Breast Milk Sharing is Making a Comeback, But Should It?” We looked at the lack of regulation of many Web sites that carry milk being donated or sold, the La Leche League policy regarding breast milk sharing, and the best and safest places to find breast milk. Milk banks are usually fairly well-regulated sources—unfortunately, they can also be expensive, and they have a limited amount of available milk.
Teamwork. At According to Kateri, there’s a lengthy post that starts with ballet dancing and the choreography of Balanchine, and ends with a call for nurses to get more credit for their role on the health care team and to develop a greater sense of agency.
Self-care. “Nursing is tough. We care for our patients; we take pride in our work. We want to do it all. The professionalism in us can also lead to our downfall, if we’re not careful and protective of our boundaries.” That’s a quote from a post at Nurseables called “Jekyll and Hyde Nursing: The Tale of Two Lives Raveled Up In One Nurse.” It’s an honest piece about taking a step back to care for oneself and one’s relationships.
NPs and primary care. A lot of pixels have been spilled about the primary care shortage and the potential for nurse practitioners to fill the gap. A post at Love and Ladybits (“The Trouble With Supervision”) cuts through the cliches, the either/or arguments that seem to dominate most discussions, instead urging all of us to stop trading stereotypes about NPs: they’re not all amazing, and they’re not all ill-informed and in need of supervision either. In that, they are like physicians.
Excellent source of nutrition & confort!