One of the most frequent questions I hear when teaching childbirth classes is: how do I return to work while I’m breastfeeding? Did you know that Colorado law protects your baby’s right to have your milk when you return to work?  It requires employers to give you breaks to express milk for your baby, and a private suitable space other than the restroom.

There are many benefits of making milk for your baby when you go back to work, they include:

• Feeling connected to your baby even when you are apart.
• Having a healthier baby, which means you take fewer sick days off work.
• Saving money.

The first place to begin is by choosing a breast pump. It may be stressful to think about spending money on a breast pump until you realize that it’s cheaper than formula (formula costs about $200 per month). In addition, many insurance companies now pay for breast pumps, thanks to the Affordable Care Act. If you participate in the Federal Women, Infants, and Children WIC program, they may be able to help you get a no-cost pump.

If you go back to work full-time, a good breast pump will cost you about $300. Look for a quiet, powerful, double pump to maintain your milk supply.  Since you will be using your breast pump multiple times day, and possibly for several children, buy the best one you can afford.

Here are some of my favorites, along with their features:

Medela Freestyle – $350 – If cost is no object, this is the glamour pump.  It is small and cute, and has a digital display with a timer.  It is the ultimate in portability, since it recharges like your cell phone.

• PROS: Tiny, portable, rechargeable, adorable. 
• CONS: Cannot be shared between mothers, since there is no germ filter, only one year warranty on defects, cannot be returned once purchased, not too durable, expensive.

Hygeia Enjoye LBI – $300 – This pump is sturdy and built to last. 

• PROS: Can be shared between mothers, 3 year warranty, 21-day return policy, quiet operation, portable and rechargeable. 
• CONS:  The size of a Kleenex box, a bit heavier, no digital display.

Medela Pump In Style – $300 – The most common pump on the market, Pump in Style is a household name.  This pump has easy to replace parts, and works well with very quiet operation.

• PROS: Quiet, reliable, strong suction. 
• CONS: Must be plugged in to work, cannot be shared (no germ filter), no return policy, 1 year warranty, no digital display.

There are other, less expensive pumps on the market, but here are the common drawbacks:

• Noisy operation
• Break easily
• Parts don’t fit together well
• Low suction – not strong enough to maintain milk supply
• Not portable
• Hard to clean

When should I start pumping after I have my baby?

After your baby is born, your first two weeks should be spent enjoying her, and not worrying about pumping.  You should feed your baby as often as possible, letting her place her order for milk, so you have milk to spare later.

After two weeks, you may start pumping once or twice a day to build up a stash of milk in your freezer.  In the beginning you will produce very little milk, but the more you pump, the more you will make.  It should never hurt when you express milk.

If babies use approximately one ounce per hour they are away from you, a baby might take in 24 to 30 ounces of milk in a whole day.  If you make 2 ounces of milk each time you pump, in two weeks, you will have a day’s supply of milk put away, so you have less pressure when you first go back to work.

Faith McGinn, R.N., IBCLC is a lactation consultant and childbirth educator at Platte Valley Medical Center. If you have a breastfeeding question, you can reach her at (303) 498-3415.  

Amber Dippel is a three year breast cancer survivor who underwent a double mastectomy and breast reconstruction following her diagnosis.

“Since I turned 40, I religiously had my mammograms. If I hadn’t, I know my cancer would have been much worse.

“My best advice for women is to start getting your mammograms at age 40 and if there’s any history, start earlier,” Amber urges. “You do not need a doctor’s referral for a screening mammogram and you can make your own mammography appointment.”

Schedule your digital mammogram screening today, call 303-498-1700.

Monday – Friday (and some Saturday appointments)
8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

• No Physician Referral Required
• Convenient Scheduling Times
• Digital, State-of-the-Art Women’s Imaging Center
• Friendly, Professional, Highly Trained Staff

Peruse unique, one-of-a-kind items like hand-crafted jewelry, doll clothes, Christmas floral, Alpaca products, children’s books, delectable baked goods, baby blankets, bird houses, and much more!

“Only 100 percent hand-crafted items will be available to provide that personal gift we all treasure,” explains PVMC’s Volunteer Services Director Kathie Young.

This festive event is Wednesday, November 30, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. in the Conference Center at Platte Valley Medical Center, which is located at 1600 Prairie Center Parkway in Brighton.

Proceeds will be donated to the Platte Valley Medical Center Foundation for the ongoing advancement of health services at PVMC. The event is free and open to the public. For additional information, please contact Kathie Young

at 303-498-1580.

Dr. Massa recently worked in the office of Platte Valley Internal Medicine and opened his solo practice to pursue his passion of providing outpatient-focused care.

“My goal is to solely see patients in the office to provide optimal care,” explains Dr. Massa. “This will allow me to perform more thorough assessments of my patients’ concerns with less interruption during patient clinic hours.”

This attentive care will not only allow him to provide more one-on-one time with his patients in the office, it also frees his schedule to create same-day and next-day appointments.

In addition to broad-based clinical experience, Dr. Massa brings an integrative approach to his treatment of patients and incorporates optional acupuncture therapy into his traditional medical practice. He received his medical degree from Tufts University School of Medicine, is board certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine, and is the only physician on staff at Platte Valley Medical Center who is a full member of the American Academy of Medical Acupuncture. He received his continuing medical education in Medical Acupuncture from the UCLA Medical School.

Integrative Internal Medicine & Medical Acupuncture is located at 1606 Prairie Center Parkway, Suite 370, in Brighton. To schedule an appointment, please call 303-659-4476. To learn more about Dr. Massa, visit this Find a Doctor link on www.pvmc.org.

Beginning next week, we will start posting our latest job postings on this blog. If you want a preview of current openings, visit www.pvmc.org/jobs.

Seasonal Flu Vaccines are $15 (flu shot is only vaccine available), High Dose Vaccines (for seniors over age 65) are $30, and Pneumonia Vaccines are $35. If you have Medicare (Part B), Evercare or Rocky Mountain Health Plan insurance you will not have a co-pay for the flu vaccine. To be eligible for this, you must bring your insurance card for proof of coverage. 

If you have ever had the flu, you know how miserable it is to be down for a week or more. Avoid the common complications of the flu this year and follow the Centers for Disease Control’s (CDC) recommendations, which strongly encourage a flu vaccine for everyone six months and older. In preparation for this flu season, the 2010-2011 flu vaccine will protect against three different flu viruses: an H3N2 virus, an influenza B virus, and the H1N1 virus that caused so much illness last season.

For additional information about the flu, visit www.cdc.gov/flu or www.flu.gov or call 800-CDC-INFO. For a list of Colorado flu clinics, visit www.immunizecolorado.com .

Fall is in full swing and is a reminder that flu season is quickly approaching. There are flu vaccination clinics now sprouting like mushrooms after spring storms. Many wonder if they need flu a shot at all. Protecting yourself from the flu is especially important for patients with heart problems. The American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association (ACC/AHA) strongly recommend flu vaccines for all adults with heart problems; in fact ‘with the same enthusiasm as cholesterol and blood-pressure control.’

This recommendation stems from several recent studies indicating that flu vaccinations significantly reduce mortality in cardiac patients. Some of the benefits of flu vaccination may be directly due to lower rates of overwhelming lung infections in cardiac patients with congested lungs due to heart failure.

However, let’s not forget that some heart attacks are triggered and occur during cold and flu infections. Fortunately, flu vaccines are readily available. You can find them locally in most grocery pharmacies and through your family physician. Protecting yourself from the flu is necessary and is also a good addition to the arsenal of medications and healthy lifestyle in the fight against heart disease.
_____________________________________________________________________________
To find a flu clinic in your area, visit www.immunizecolorado.com. Dr. Molavi is the area’s only Interventional Cardiologist and Peripheral Vascular Disease Specialist. He works in the office of High Plains Heart & Vascular Center in Brighton at Platte Valley Medical Center. For more information or to schedule an in-office consultation, call (303) 659-7000. High Plains Heart & Vascular Center is located at 1600 Prairie Center Parkway, Suite 370, in Brighton.

When Susan’s lab had puppies, she had no intention of keeping any of them. Somehow the family couldn’t let go of the one little white ball of fur they named Avalanche. “Avy” was only a couple of years old when Susan’s husband was killed in a tragic accident. Two years later, she came to Platte Valley Medical Center looking for an opportunity to start healing. On several occasions she had asked about joining our pet partner program. She wanted to help others.

For two years now, they have helped patients who needed a friendly visitor and a dog to snuggle with. Little did Susan know the impact it would make on her own life.

Susan and Avy are a perfect fit for Platte Valley Medical Center’s Paws to Heal program. This remarkable team spends two days a week at the hospital visiting patients, visitors, and staff throughout the facility. Everywhere they go they welcome and brighten everyone’s day. They spend many hours sitting at our patients’ bedsides, comforting them and making them smile.

Over the past three and a half years, Susan and Avy have impacted the lives of many people in our community. Susan’s stories are numerous and varied. Avy has helped children in Physical Medicine overcome their fear of dogs and helped improve their speech and motor skill functions. Avy sits patiently as the kids lay on her, talk to her, pet her, count her toes and look into her soft ears. Susan has even seen parents cry when their child accomplishes a skill they’ve had difficulty with because Avy was there to make their tasks easier.

Our Intensive Care Unit is one of this team’s specialties. No matter who they see, the staff is always amazed at the positive impact Susan and Avy have on patients. They never rush. They spend as much time as the patient and family needs to provide a relaxing and enjoyable pet partner experience.

Susan and Avy are a dedicated team. Besides visiting at our hospital, they visit an area highly-skilled assisted living home and many of the businesses in Brighton and the surrounding communities. They also volunteer at outside functions, including the 9Health Fair and seasonal flu vaccination clinics.

The pet partner teams with Platte Valley Medical Center’s Paws to Heal program are registered through Delta Society (Redmond, WA) and American Humane ATT (Denver). This registration ensures our teams are trained, meet health and grooming requirements, and are appropriate for their work at the hospital.

“Words can’t express how proud we are of Susan and Avalanche,” explains PVMC’s Paws to Heal Coordinator and Director of Volunteer Services Kathie Young. “Congratulations for all the wonderful work you do at Platte Valley Medical Center and the community beyond our doors. You’re indeed special and have earned this prestigious award.”

About the Spirit of Planetree Award
The Spirit of Planetree Awards were created to promote patient-centered care by publicly recognizing individuals who personalize and demystify the healthcare experience for others as well as programs and services that support extraordinary achievement in patient-centered care.

The initiative helps communicate the character and quality of the caregivers and healthcare organizations serving the community in the Planetree network. The Awards positively impact staff morale in affiliated institutions through an award process that includes and reflects appreciation by peers and administrators and, in many cases, recognizes those who have not been in the spotlight for professional achievements.
 

What is Planetree?
Platte Valley Medical Center became one of only three hospitals in Colorado to embrace the Planetree Philosophy of Care in 2010. Founded by a patient who endured a traumatic healthcare experience, Planetree is an internationally-recognized not-for-profit organization that partners with health care providers around the globe to advance patient-centered approaches to care.

Planetree has been at the forefront of the effort to personalize, humanize, and demystify the healthcare system for 30 years. The concept of Planetree is about delivering healthcare in a manner that works best for patients. In a patient-centered environment, Platte Valley Medical
Center partners with patients and their families to satisfy the full range of patient needs and preferences.

PVMC RECOGNIZES THAT:

• a patient is an individual to be cared for, not a medical condition to be treated;
  each patient is a unique person, with diverse needs;
• patients are partners and have knowledge and expertise that is essential to their care. Patients’ family and friends are also partners;
• access to understandable health information is essential to empower patients to participate in their care;
• the opportunity to make decisions is essential to the well-being of patients;
• every staff member is a caregiver, whose role is to meet each patient’s needs.

To learn more about PVMC’s Planetree progress, visit Platte Valley Medical Center’s Facebook page, YouTube Channel, and www.pvmc.org/blog, or for a complete list of Planetree members, visit www.planetree.org.