To wonder why the GP is making it so hard for me to feed my baby?

[hereismydog]

DS is 3mo and has CMPA. He was EBF until he was 8 weeks old and then I had major surgery and post-op infection which caused my supply to drop and it never quite recovered. We moved to combi feeding as trying to continue EBF was physically and mentally exhausting for me as he was feeding up to 20 times a day. Both he and I are much happier now that he is BF on demand, with CMPA formula top ups.

The problem is that his GP will only prescribe ONE 400g tin of formula at a time, so I am submitting a request for the next one (online pharmacy) before his order is even delivered. There’s been a delay this week so his delivery is 5 days late and I’ve had to ask 111/his GP twice for an emergency prescription. I’ve asked on both occasions if they could maybe prescribe more than one tin and it is never actioned. I’ve gone from being incredibly anxious about my own milk supply to being anxious about his formula supply, and am now finding that I have to ration his formula and go back to an exhausting schedule of almost constant breastfeeding and pumping, which is pretty isolating as I can hardly leave the house!

Surely this cannot be usual practice for prescribing formula? If not, how can I get them to listen to me and issue more than one tin at a time? He is also supposed to have been referred to a dietitian, which has seemingly not been done as I haven’t heard anything.

Were you trying to be helpful or just patronising?

I had to go in and speak to the practice and explain how many days a tin of formula would last with the recommended feed level for my child's age. Then then realised how ridiculous the prescription was. I don't think they had really realised how small the prescription formula tins are. I then explained how stressful it was because if the prescription wasn't filled I couldn't pop to the next town and look or swap to another brand that was in, I either had to not feed my child or feed them food they were allergic to.

A woman I went to school with was actually convicted of fraudulently obtaining prescription formula a few years ago back, about £15,000 worth and then selling it on, she got a suspended sentence. It’s because of things like this that they limit it.

Is it only available on prescription? Or could you not buy a tin, so you always have one in hand?

Idiot.

If you can afford it, buy 2 from an online pharmacy and then carry on ordering the rest from the gp so you're not so close to running out when there's a slight delay.

You can buy it, it's around £30 for a 400g tin though so about 3x the price of normal formula.

Totally true. I have a life long condition that requires daily medication. I can only get a month at a time. Drives me nuts.

Jesus. How incredibly tone deaf.

Well, that's the solution, then. Given she's mainly getting formula for free (which mums of non cmpa babies who can't bfreastfeed would have to pay for), it's not really a big deal to buy a tin or two in order to ease the stress of the timings.

This is ridiculous. Have you asked in an actual GP appointment? If not, request one for the purpose of reviewing your baby's CMPA and symptoms. Don't mention wanting an appointment to discuss this issue of formula quantity, in case they just decline and issue a single tin again. Unfortunately some practice systems are appalling.
Calculate how long a tin lasts and how many you need for 1 month, which is the standard length of time for a medication. Then you can inform the GP at your appointment that this is what you need, on repeat, say 8 tins to last 28 days.
I am a GP. I prescribe 2 tins initially to check baby will take it, then do a phone call review at 2 and f2f at 4 weeks, then if all ok and symptoms resolved, it goes on repeat with however many the parent requires for 1 month. Obviously amount goes up with age as baby drinks more, but I expect the parent to inform me if their monthly requirement has changed.

Yes, we were told the same. Same old problem, a few lowlifes ruining it for those in need.

I found what helped was giving the GP a calculation. 1scoop = 1oz of milk. 1 scoop = approx 5g. So a 400g tin makes 80oz o formula. My daughter could easily take 40oz a day, so a tin lasted 2 days. With these calculations they prescribed us 8 x 400g, to last about 2 weeks.

It is expensive though, my daughter was on pepti which is about £20 per 400g, so she was costing the nhs up to £100 per week in formula. The nore expensive ones like neonate cost twice as much, so I can see why they need to be careful, but also appreciate the stress.

You can buy it without prescription, and I bought a few to keep for emergencies when pharmacy ran out, GP slow etc.

@hereismydog https://www.chemist-4-u.com/aptamil-pepti-1-from-birth-onwards-400g?gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAADMV1WTKN2-98dDrau_PlEfo1Dazl&gclid=CjwKCAjw--K_BhB5EiwAuwYoytNetyaL5Wu-xlG4iP-nUDXQcxWxYjRX9OUtVqlZs0iUli00HSs3ihoCC6kQAvD_BwE

This happened to us. I spoke to our health visitor who said the correct amount is 8 per prescription. She spoke to the GP and had them amend it. Never had the issue again so I'd really recommend giving them a call.

Nutramigen is slightly more broken down than pepti, so the worsened reflux is a result if it being thinner than Pepti rather than more 'allergic'. Try a small amount
of a thickener like carobel.

My very particular DD2 couldn't tolerate the level of dairy in pepti and the consistency of nutramigen. She ended up with a combination of the 2 working perfectly, took a while for the GP to agree to that bizarre request though!!!

I just had a look, it's £25 for 800g, so probably worth buying a few tins as a contingency.

It depends on the brand, some are cheaper so hopefully hers is one of those.

I am shocked to hear this is going on.
An ill child would cost the NHS more than the prescribed requirement of specific formula. An an exhausted ill mother would cost even more.
This is absolutely ridiculous.
OP I am so sorry you are having such a stressful time. I don't have any personal experience but all the suggestions on here sound very useful.
Make a diary of exact measurements of how much formula your baby needs to consume each day. Add it all together to work out the monthly consumption. Take this with a tin of formula to show the GP that 1 tin is not enough and you absolutely need a reserve of prescription formula in the house.
I do hope this will get resolved for you. I have a feeling you might have to go back in person to see the GP. Or health visitor to ask for help.

Have you got a local parent fb group or even local fb group generally? In our area it gets given away constantly. A few weeks back someone had 6 tins unopened to get rid of. It's often prescribed as a months supply and then doesn't agree with baby for whatever reason and it unused so they give it away. Worth an ask maybe.

Also email the practice manager. Their contact details are usually on the website.

You need to be referred to a dietician at the hospital. GPs are so stingy when it comes to prescribing. When my daughter was diagnosed they would only give a max 6 weeks of prescription so had to buy it myself until the referral came in (thankfully it was only a 10 week wait)
same GP also won’t prescribe a liquid form of medication she takes only tablet that I have to crush and dissolve so we travel once a quarter to a hospital to collect the liquid from the hospital pharmacy

What a shitty thing to say to the OP. You should be ashamed of yourself.

Being fair to people like that, it's quite possible she saw it but just thought your mental health mattered much less than breastmilk.

I've been there with Alfamino and it's so incredibly stressful. Damaging to mental health, exactly what you don't need when you're a new mum. I second the recommendations to speak to the Practice Manager. If that doesn't work, complain to the ICB.

So very unhelpful.

What's your health visitor like? Mine was brilliant and called the GP directly and sorted it out for me. Might be worth a try