Every year, thousands of infants in every country are hospitalized for complications due to underfeeding from exclusive breastfeeding including dehydration, hypoglycemia and excessive jaundice. Many families leave these experiences traumatized and some babies are irreversibly injured. The only way hospitals and health organizations responsible for patient safety know to make their infant feeding policies safer is through patients raising awareness. If your child experienced a feeding complication, please consider writing your hospital’s CEO, the Joint Commission on Patient Safety in the U.S. and your health insurance company. Below is a letter template to help you get the process started. We have also provided links to the Joint Commission Patient Safety reporting page and the International Board of Lactation Consultant Examiners complaint form. The more detail you are able to provide the better. For more information on how to gather information about your child’s hospital course and the possibility of injury, please write [email protected].
Report to the Joint Commission
File a Lactation Consultant Complaint
For access to the Google Docs Version, go here.
Provided by Grace Baldomar Delos Santos whose son developed jaundice and dehydration from insufficient feeding due to exclusive breastfeeding. She was not told about the higher risk of jaundice from exclusive breastfeeding nor the risk to her child’s brain.
We believe all babies deserve to be protected from hunger and thirst every single day of their life and we believe that education on Safe Infant Feeding should be free. If you would like to make a donation to support the Fed is Best Foundation’s mission to teach every parent Safe Infant Feeding, please consider making a one-time or recurring donation to our organization.
Disclaimer: This resource page does not replace in-person physician evaluation and treatment. It is meant to inform parents of the most recent data regarding infant feeding and to increase their knowledge on how to protect their newborns from hyperbilirubinemia, dehydration, hypernatremia, hypoglycemia and extended or repeat hospitalizations due to complications from underfeeding. Earlier supplementation may be needed for babies who are premature or have medical conditions. It is recommended that a parent seeks evaluation by a physician trained in newborn care for any concerns regarding the health and safety of her baby if they arise.