‘Pacifiers don’t belong in baby-friendly hospitals’

With three nurses attending to 30 babies in the nursery, staff had their hands full in the Cebu Puericulture and Maternity House on the night baby Johannes was found with his upper mouth taped.

“The baby was crying loudly. The nurses couldn’t attend to all of the infants,” said Lilibeth Llona of the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) regional office which visited the center yesterday.

She said one nurse placed a pacifier in baby Johannes’ mouth and taped it.

She said the CHR will wait for the parents to file a complaint for the office to proceed with its inquiry.

The private maternity hospital may have violated one of “ten steps for successful breastfeeding” prescribed by the Department of Health (DOH, which certifies maternity centers.
Under No. 9 of the policy, every facility caring for newborn infants and providing maternity services must “give no artificial tests or pacifiers (also called dummies or soothers) to breastfeeding infants.”

“The establishment is under assessment by the DOH for the issuance of a mother-baby friendly hospital certificate,” said DOH information officer Suzette Jabonete.

“If they don’t change their practice or protocol, this may be affected. If there is no certificate, the establishment can’t renew its license this year,” she said.

Renewal of licenses will start n October 2014.

The breastfeeding policy of DOH is based on the United Nations Childrens Fund (Unicef) and World Health Organization standards.

Dr. Lakshmi Legaspi, DOH assistant regional director, said that if the institution is guilty the agency can file a recommendation to revoke the license.

Baby home

The baby was discharged yesterday at 5:30 p.m .

“He’s good, he has been very well taken care off just like a baby. No more tape,” said Ryan Noval, the father whose angry complaint on Facebook about discovering the infant’s mouth taped in the nursery, placed the hospital on the spot.

He and the mother Jasmine Badocdoc, met with directors of the hospital yesterday.

“We were informed that they officially started the investigation. We will let them do their job and as for our family we will be a little quiet today,” said the father.

A reliable source in the hospital said the directors assured the couple that the center doesn’t condone the use of pacifiers or taping them to a baby’s mouth, and that steps would be taken to sanction the staff involved.

“I think an apology is good. But it doesn’t erase what happened. It will be forgive and remember,” Noval told reporters.

He said if the nurse who taped their son’s mouth comes forward to apologize, he would rather it be a private meeting not a public one to protect the employee’s privacy and her family.
But as for the hospital, Noval said that they have made no arrangements.

“We can’t be bought and it’s not about money . This is all about principles,” he said.
Noval said their legal counsel has advised them to push forward.

“This is not for personal gain but for everyone else. It’s about shaking the system of the nursing industry,” he added./with correspondent Carine M. Asutilla