Why do midwives work for formula companies?

[hunkermunker]

For instance...

Isn't it against their terms of registration, or something?

because not all women choose to breastfeed?

Not against terms of registration but if a mw worked for a UNICEF baby friendly certified hospital and also for SMA it wouldn't look too good! MWs are not allowed to have any direct contact with reps or display logos on any of their stuff (pens, obstetric calculators, etc...)

Yes, Bigted, I know that.

But there's a huge difference between supporting a woman's choices (as I do) and being paid by a formula company.

bigted, you don't see a conflict of interest there?

Midwives support mothers and families in many situations, even when formula feeding is necessary or desired. They may not personally feel it is the best decision, it may not be something they chose for themselves, but their role is not to judge but to provide current and up-to-date information and support.

Much better for mothers to get the help they may need from a professional source whom they are likely to trust and that includes those mothers/families who are formula feeding....

I know that midwives can provide support for women however they feed their babies.

But SURELY people can see there is, as VLC (hello!) says, a conflict of interest for a midwife to be PAID by formula companies?

Why do people think the formula companies pay midwives to appear in clips showing how to (rather dodgily) latch babies onto breasts?

Hunker - whom do you think should give advice about safe formula feeding?

Well, formula companies don't give advice about safe formula feeding - so not them?

Midwives and other health professionals who keep themselves up to speed on current guidelines and research, please.

But not midwives paid by formula companies.

Do you
(a) work in an understaffed labour ward doing unsociable hours, for not very much money, and so much stress that you're burnt out by 45
or
(b) decide "sod this" and work for SMA where you can work term time only, decent enough pay, and not get abused by members of the public on a daily basis?

Why does anyone do anything - some people work to live, others live to work. Some midwives think formula is morally wrong and promoting it reprehensible; others couldn't give a monkey's.

That SMA website is very cynical.

They are paying lip service to b/fing. Really; proper way to latch followed immediately by how a baby takes a bottle

Midwives should be able to give safe and reliable advice on all aspects of infant feeding, without favouring one product over another.

It is against their own professional code of practice to actually work for a company making formula milk - at least this is how I would read the code:

www.nmc-uk.org/aArticle.aspx?ArticleID=3056

Clearly, they seem to be able to continue being registered as midwives while breaking this code, for some reason.

oooo a quiz, hunker, goody, I know, I know...

it's got to be either

a) SMA are a really philanthropic and charitable organisation who truly only desire that more babies be successfully and happily breastfed, thus diminishing their market share and ultimately rendering themselves redundant and bankrupt but nevertheless with a warm glow of satisfaction to take with the ex-employees to the job centre
or
b) SMA has marketing execs and a PR team who have included within their media strategy a cynical ploy to represent themselves as pro-bf and luvverly, whilst failing to ACTUALLY offer any real support, and also subtly insinuating throughout that bf is really quite difficult, and not so very different from bottlefeeding after all, and can be easily and simply replaced without guilt at the earliest opportunity. Thus increasing market share and overall market size and making money.

give me a mo whilst I think this through...

Probably paid by an agency, so technically not in breach of the code. I don't know, but am guessing it goes through a 3rd party.

The SMA site also has some promotion of breastfeeding, albeit limited which of course in understandable....I believe the midwife would be available to answer questions and offer support in regard to any feeding option and is not necessarily promoting one over the other.

It's unbelievable isn't it Hunker?
One really wonders how people like our Bev can have missed the point in such an astoundingly spectacular fashion.

Don't get me started on the atrocities I have seen on my recent trip to Bangladesh.

G'wan, start a thread! Did you see Politics Of Breastfeeding is hot off the press, btw?

Tiktok, thank you - I thought it was against their code.

Babbity, it's a crummy set-up that means it's an appealing option - and I can see how it would be tempting for some

VLC, it's A, isn't it? Oh, no - hang on, I've been blindsided by the marketing spin glare on the SMA site - it's B. I'm sure of it.

Correct! Here, have a free cuddly cow.

When I read the thread title I thought bollocks, they can't surely. Sadly on reading I'm not overly surprised. It is paying lip service to bfing, making themselves look more reputable by featuring a midwife. So that at 3am when it's all going wrong it's the SMA website that sticks in a new mother's head. Disgusting Thanks for saying about Politics of Bfing, will order it over the next few days. I've been wanting to read it for ages.

I often wish someone would infiltrate a formula company and secretly film for an exposé documentary.

I'd set my video for that, I would.

Oh me too vlc, now that would be interesting.

www.radiotimes.com/ListingsServlet?event=10&channelId=105&programmeId=96271857&jspLocation=/jsp/prog detailsfullpage.jsp

I think this may touch on the formula marketing thing briefly. It's on on Thursday evening.

I hope he finds out what immunofortis is.

Prog's only an hour long, VLC - you'll be wanting the moon on a stick next!