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Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

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Original poster

Did you have to take your own formula milk into hospital?

52 replies

mears · 01/12/2010 22:43

Does anyone have experience of taking own formula milk into hospital or was there a vending machine or some other way to provide formula milk?

Just looking for experiences of units that do not provide formula milk for free.

OP posts:

Yummygummybear · 04/12/2010 10:08

5 years ago when I had my DS I noticed that Formula was provided in the little glass bottles with teats already attached.

I am at a different hospital this time & have been advised that if I want to FF then I need to bring bottles (they have a hot water machine for steralising) and ready made cartons of milk.

I was planning to FF this time due to the trouble I had BF last time but I'm not sure about leaving half cartons of formula in the fridge at hospital & I guess having to mark it up to show it is mine etc so I have decided to BF while in hospital if I can & then see how I feel once I am home

theborrower · 04/12/2010 11:27

I'm actually quite surprised by this thread - I never even thought about it and was initially really shocked. I used formula in hospital, despite wanting to BF (long story) but as the doctors insisted baby needed it, it was provided. Looking at the FFing mums on the ward, though, it looked like they had the wee glass bottles with teats which were hospital ones. I guess it makes sense if you are definitely planning to FF you take in cartons, but there must be some flexibilty surely? (what if mums come into hospital a bit unexpectedly?). I don't think an outright ban is workable.

Re the maternity towels etc - these were provided for the first couple of days, but as soon as I was mobile (had EMCS) I was asked if I had my own and if so, to use them.

My mum couldn't believe it when I told her we'd be expected to bring in our own nappies, cotton wool, maternity pads etc - "it wasn't like that in my day, we were in hospital for 10 days and they provided everything, showed us how to bathe our babies blah blah blah" - she also thinks it's shocking that mums are discharged so quickly. Times change, I guess.

Original poster

mears · 04/12/2010 17:03

The difference is that women are not ill and the safest place for mum and baby to be is home. They are also not discharged - theyu are transferred to community care. That is the official speak anyway

OP posts:

Mishy1234 · 04/12/2010 17:49

As far as I know, the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary will provide formula if there's a medical need. With DS1, I took a couple of cartons in with me as I hadn't really thought about how I was going to feed him and was just going to give bf a go. Luckily for me, the MW's were VERY pro-bf as DS was jaundiced and we had a difficult time getting him to feed. The whole thing was quite distressing (expressing colostrum into a syringe, being prodded and poked by MW's), but in the end I am eternally grateful for their support. If it hadn't been for them I am SURE I would have formula fed as I was just desperate for him to eat anything at all.

Secondtimelucky · 04/12/2010 17:55

QE in Woolwich does not provide any bottle feeding equipment unless medically necessary - i.e. the mother had planned to breastfeed but for some reason is not/cannot/needs top ups or the baby is in special care. There's plenty of 24 hour shops nearby, so I suspect a partner is sent off to the shops if you turn up without and don't plan to breastfeed.

I think that's right TBH. If it is a straight question of choice, I don't see why that should come out of a hospital budget.

Of course, I'm also a bit militant and am not convinced that it should be lawful for formula companies to make the profits they do on their products, keeping the price of formula higher than it needs to be. But that's another debate.

wigglesrock · 04/12/2010 18:16

mears I think its a great idea to stop providing formula to mothers who wish to use it. If its solely for a cost-cutting exercise why don't we ask formula companies to provide the formula free to the hospitals, I'm sure some companies would be interested.

mrsgordonfreeman · 04/12/2010 18:43

I had dd at UCLH and didn't need the formula and wasn't offered any but because I couldn't sleep in the very noisy unit, I wandered around at night with dd in a sling and poked about everywhere and found the storeroom where they kept the ready made glass bottles of SMA.

Wiggles, I think that under the WHO Code hospitals are not permitted to receive free formula, and they would certainly lose their baby friendly certification if they did - I am sure formula companies would jump at the chance.

For the record I got nuffink from the hospital at all, not even cotton wool, and was accused to trying to nick extra paracetamol on my way out .

crikeybadger · 05/12/2010 11:59

I've had my three DS at home and was given a list of everything I would need to provide - so that included floor coverings, a torch and even a container to store the placenta in

I didn't have any problem with this and think a similar list should be provided for women who go in to hospital. (it might already be of course)

The Baby Friendly Initiative do not call for hospitals to stop provision of formula.

the link is here for anyone interested.

Original poster

mears · 05/12/2010 12:38

Yes it isn't a requirement of a Baby Friendly hospital not to provide formula. My unit has been Baby Friendly for a number of years. The main issue is cost for a cash strapped NHS. I think my unit just has to stop providing it just like the others you have told me about.

OP posts:

CrystalQueen · 05/12/2010 12:59

I'm sorry but the cost of formula must be a tiny fraction of the cost of running a maternity unit. At Ninewells hospital in Dundee the midwives were giving out formula to those who asked. We had been told to bring in our own nappies and sanitary towels but they were also provided.

The logistics of sterilising your own stuff in the ward must be a nightmare. Do you really expect women who have just had a section to be up lugging a cold water steriliser about? I found it difficult enough dealing with the cold water steriliser I was given for a breast pump a week after giving birth.

Lougle · 05/12/2010 13:06

CrystalQueen generally each ward has a 'milk kitchen' and all sterilisers are named and kept there. No lugging around needed.

Secondtimelucky · 05/12/2010 13:09

Crystal - Yes, it would be a tiny percentage, but these things add up. I don't know the maths, but what if over a year the cost of providing formula to those who chose to formula feed (as opposed to emergency situations) funded one nursing position, or one incubator, or whatever it added up to.

Businesses routinely make these types of decisions. There's a famous economics example (which I can't now find) about a business ( I think it was an airline) which trimmed a massive amount of money of its food budget by putting one fewer tomato in the salads. Stuff adds up.

At my hospital, there were sterlising facilities, but the bottles and formula you have to bring in.

Woodlands · 05/12/2010 13:22

When my DS was readmitted for jaundice/weight loss/low blood sugar at 3 days we had to give formula top ups. The nurse asked which brand I wanted to use, I said no idea and was about to ask what the choices were when she said "I suggest Aptimil, it's supposed to be closest to breastmilk". I was slightly taken aback! Anyway it was provided in little 100ml glass bottles with disposable teats to screw on the top, so no sterilisation was needed. I was also given sterile disposable parts for the breastpump. I can see that this would get expensive for hospitals. I think the Baby Friendly thing is that hospitals aren't allowed to accept free formula.

Original poster

mears · 05/12/2010 13:26

CrystalQueen - the estimated saving is £10,000 a year.

The proposal is to provide disposable sterile bottles and teats so really it os only the milk that needs provised.

Babies who need formula milk for medical reasons will be given it.

Woodlands - you are right to be shocked. You should have been told they were all the same

OP posts:

cardamomginger · 05/12/2010 15:47

I had to take my own forumla in and the hospital specified that it be cartons of ready mixed formula. They provided disposable bottles and teats. There were no sterilising facilities available.

TruthSweet · 05/12/2010 15:49

Mears - As a complete aside - What size do the formula bottles come in on the ward as 100mls seems very wasteful for a newborn (I thought a newborn stomach could hold about 5mls building up to about 60-80mls on day 10). Or is there 25ml bottles and 50ml bottles available as well?

I though one of the drawbacks of ffing was the propensity for people encouraging a baby to finish the bottle (not a given of course just that it can be worrying if baby doesn't finish a bottle [having done this myself with DD1 and her mandated 2oz every 2 hours when he had jaundice]) so having 100ml bottles given out could lead to babies being given too much milk.

chibi · 05/12/2010 15:55

On my ward the bottles were about small baby food jar size

I had to top up ds til my milk came in

In retrospect I am not sure I think I needed to but I wasn't in any shape to argue

I used to cup feed him 20 ml I think and then chuck the rest

I did think it was rather wasteful

Original poster

mears · 05/12/2010 15:57

100ml bottles are supplied. No option for smaller bottles. Average size babies take approx 30ml, sometimes more. Yes you are right, it is wasteful.

If mothers bring in cartons, then that would be split up into smaller feeds. Would have cost more to provide facilities to do that with existing 100ml bottles. Bulk supplies are cheaper than individual so I am guessing it would have cost formula companies ( and hsopitals) more to provide bottles in smaller quantities.

OP posts:

Original poster

mears · 05/12/2010 15:58

chibi - if formula is less accessible then perhaps the rubbish advice you were given will also be stopped

OP posts:

KaraStarbuckThrace · 05/12/2010 15:58

Hi Mears, I gave birth to my ds in a hospital with UNICEF baby friendly status.
Formula was available to those who were recommended to use it, or ask to use it - and yes I was given a choice of 2 brands.
Because I was bfing (Paed recommended formula top ups as he was concerned about DS's blood sugar levels - incorrectly!!), and the MWs cup fed DS the formula for me, they insisted they did it to avoid the association between the formula and my breastmilk.

Hope this helps!

mousymouse · 05/12/2010 16:07

I gave birth in the royal london hospital and the midwifes gave out formula in single use bottles after much nagging as requested. there were signs saying that only these bottles are allowed to be used on the ward.

Original poster

mears · 05/12/2010 16:14

Currently we offer the choice of 4. Despite mothers only supposed to be getting 1 bottle at a time, a large number go home illicitly to the community!

OP posts:

TruthSweet · 05/12/2010 16:43

Thanks mears. Does seem quite extravagant to throw away 2/3rds of a bottle of formula! How much do they cost each?

Original poster

mears · 05/12/2010 16:57

Here is an example of starter packs from SMA

Pretty costly. Hospital supplies would be cheaper though.

OP posts:

TruthSweet · 05/12/2010 17:17

So that's £16 for 1200mls of formula when you might only be giving 360mls of it (assuming 30mls every 2 hours approx). That's extortionate - £1.33 a feed and most of it wasted! No wonder people want hospitals to keep providing bottles. I really think formula should be provided at cost or as good as - would it be really terrible to bring back National Milk but with a modern recipe?

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