Leading Lactation Insights - May 2022

The Formula Shortage: How We Can Help

Families in the United States who feed their babies infant formula are in a crisis. There’s not enough on the shelves of stores and many parents are worried that they may not be able to feed their babies.

How did it happen?

For many months, there has been exceptional pressure on the US and global supply chains due to COVID-19, the resulting staff shortages, increased demand for products, the war in Ukraine and the scarcity of some commodities. The shortage of infant formula products was compounded when Abbott Laboratories, the maker of Similac infant formula, issued 3 product recalls and shut down a factory due to serious contamination concerns. As Abbott is the exclusive supplier for more than half of WIC agencies, many mothers and babies all over the country have been affected.

This shortage has led to panic buying and hoarding; in response, retailers began limiting amounts of formula that consumers could purchase to small amounts that would only last for a few days of formula feeding. Additionally, some families, whose babies are required to be on special formulas, have reported that they been unable to locate any formula and their babies are at risk for illness or even hospitalization.

How bad is this crisis?

It’s severe. As of May, over 40% of infant formula products are out of stock across the country and some areas of the country are in worse shape than others. All formula companies in the US have ramped up production but it is not enough to meet the needs of infants and children. Specialty formulas have been especially hard to find. Babies who have allergies to cow’s milk and/or soy allergies often cannot drink alternatives and they are at risk for severe illness and hospitalization.

What does this mean for parents, families, mothers, and babies?

Parents of formula-fed infants are anxious, under a great deal of stress and are struggling to find ways to feed their babies.  They are travelling all around to stores only to find the shelves empty. They are spending hours on the computer trying to order products online. Some parents have even resorted to preparing non-nutritious homemade infant formula, watering down the formula they have on hand, or mixing foods not intended for infants - all of which is very risky and can be harmful to infants’ health.

How can Breastfeeding Advocates help during this crisis?

• Encourage mothers who are having trouble with breastfeeding to seek out the care of a Lactation Consultant. The United States Lactation Consultant Association has a directory of IBCLCs by location that parents can use as a resource: www.uslca.org/find-an-ibclc. 
    
• Ask mothers who have excess milk and whose babies are growing well to consider donating to a milk bank.

• Reviewing options with parents who may be partially or exclusively formula feeding and who are looking to increase or re-establish a milk supply. 

https://uslca.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Navigating-the-US-Formula-Shortage.pdf 

This month's spotlight: Patricia Esposito, RN, MS, IBCLC, LCCE from New York

Patricia Esposito, RN, MS, IBCLC, LCCE, has over 55 years of experience providing high-quality care to patients in the Obstetrical Care Units. She says that taking care of patients has been her passion since she was a little girl, which led to her attending St. Vincent’s Hospital School of Nursing in New York City to become a Registered Nurse. Patricia later obtained her Bachelor’s of Science in Health Administration from St. Joseph College in Patchogue, New York, followed by her Master’s in Health Administration from the New School for Social Research in Manhattan.

During this time, Patricia had four children – all of whom she breastfed. As she welcomed her own babies and worked in an Obstetrical Unit, Patricia’s interest in natural childbirth was sparked. In 1979, she became an ASPO (American Society for Psychoprophylaxis in Obstetrics)-certified Childbirth Educator. This organization later became Lamaze International. Patricia continued to work in the Labor and Delivery Unit while teaching Lamaze classes from her home. She eventually became the Head Nurse at Southside Hospital’s Labor and Delivery Unit in Bay Shore, New York, which consisted of 60 employees and serviced about 3,000 births annually! She recalls not being pleased with the breastfeeding education available and offered at that time to staff and patients and, because of this, Patricia became an IBCLC in 1998. She was also honored by the March of Dimes for her work in the Obstetrical community.

Though Patricia retired from her Head Nurse position in 2009, she remains actively involved with her hospital as a Lactation Consultant. The following year, she began a weekly breastfeeding support group at the hospital, with attendance steadily growing over the years. In 2017, Southside Hospital became an affiliate of Baby Café USA and, in 2021, achieved Baby-Friendly status. Once in-person meetings were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Patricia began facilitating the virtual baby café twice weekly. She also teaches a monthly breastfeeding preparation class through the hospital for expectant parents, while continuing to offer childbirth education classes and occasional in-home lactation guidance as requested.

Patricia notes one of her challenges was transitioning into the world of technology due to the onset of COVID and the subsequent need to develop virtual breastfeeding support resources. She says, “I entered the health field in the time of handwritten notes. As electronic charting came into being, I progressed along with it, but I had no knowledge of the workings of Zoom or Microsoft Teams.” Having overcome those early challenges, she says the baby cafes are great because of the convenient accessibility to moms, but that they also lack the hands-on assistance aspect of support when it comes to latching difficulties.

As a result, Patricia says that she would love to see baby cafes transition into a hybrid program, blending convenient virtual meetings for better accessibility with occasional in-person meetings for more interaction and easier hands-on assistance. She also notes that Southside Hospital – now South Shore University Hospital, a member of the Northwell healthcare team – currently has a lactation team of 5 IBCLCs and a majority of their maternal-child health nurses are also CLCs. She credits many innovations in the Obstetrical department over recent years to their lactation coordinator, Wendi Andria MSN, who developed their official lactation program in 2014.

In her free time, Patricia enjoys being outdoors, walking, beaching, boating, kayaking, and paddle-boarding. She loves entertaining friends and family, and misses doing so in recent years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. She says “cherishes the time I spend with my four children, their spouses, and my 10 grandchildren.” Most of all, she says, she is blessed to still be with her high school sweetheart after 55 years of marriage!

Thank you, Patricia, for dedicating your career to caring for moms, babies, and families. Your knowledge of and contributions to this field through the years are greatly appreciated by many!

Thank you to this issue's contributors and writers!