Grace Weatherby
/ Categories: WELLNESS, 2023

The Baby Café: Free Information & Support to Families

Beginning January 10, 2024 at the Bennington Community Market

As anyone who has ever cared for a newborn knows, the first days, weeks, and months are often filled with more questions than answers: Is the baby eating enough? Are they sleeping too much or too little? Is this much spit up normal? The list goes on and on. But one subject that seems to top the list of new parent/caregiver concerns is breastfeeding.

Often described as the “natural way” to feed your baby, breastfeeding does not always come naturally to a mother or baby. For those who are feeding breast milk by bottle or using formula, there are other challenges too. The experience can be frustrating and emotionally draining.

But now, thanks to the opening of a brand-new Baby Café, caregivers in the Bennington region have a reliable and comfortable place to find support and answers.

Starting January 10 and based out of the Bennington Community Market at 239 Main St., Bennington, the Baby Café is a service provided by the Women’s and Children’s Services of Southwestern Vermont Medical Center. Open every Wednesday from 11 to 12:30pm, the Café is a free, drop-in, informal breastfeeding support group staffed with International Board Certified Lactation Consultants and/or RNs.

From questions about lactation, accessing the local milk bank, and weaning to tips on latching on, pumping, and storing milk, the Baby Café is the perfect place for anyone seeking information related to feeding infants human milk.  Plus, it provides parents and caregivers the chance to share experiences and challenges of feeding your infant.

In addition, the Baby Café will have a scale on hand at each meeting for all-important weigh-ins. Snacks and beverages will also be served.

All interested new and expectant parents—no matter how you currently are or plan to feed your child—are encouraged to attend. Siblings and other children are also welcome. No registration is required.

Mindy Dame, MS, RN is the Director for Intensive Care, Women’s and Children's Services at Southwestern Vermont Medical Center.

              

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Six Questions with General Surgeon Gina Diaz, MD

Both outpatient surgical procedures and those requiring an overnight stay are once again being offered at SVMC. General Surgeon Gina Diaz, MD, answers six questions about resuming surgical procedures safely.

1. How does it feel to be able to, once again, offer all of the procedures you had in the past?

As a surgeon, I like to do surgeries. So, to be honest, it feels wonderful get back to the work I enjoy. From late March through the beginning of May, we were still performing emergency surgeries, so everyone who needed a surgery was able to receive one during that time. But it's good to be back to a mix of scheduled and emergency procedures.

 

2. What types of procedures you perform?

My mentor during training sub-specialized in colon and rectal surgeries, and he passed that expertise and interest on to me. But I decided not to sub-specialize, because I also enjoy doing gall bladders, ulcer surgery, hernias, and the removal of skin lesions, cysts, and melanomas. Dr. Charles Salem and I work as a team on breast cancer surgeries. As a group, we provide thyroid and parathyroid and endocrine surgeries. And I provide colonoscopies. I grew up playing video games, which have a lot in common with colonoscopies, I think.

 

3. What do you like most about your job?

Surgery allows you to fix a problem for a patient right then and there. You don't have to wait 6 months for the problem to get better. You can make a problem go away. It’s very rewarding in that way.

 

4. In general, what additional precautions have been put in place to ensure that care is safe?

As surgeons, our precautionary measures have always been among the most advanced. We have always washed and sanitized many, many times a day. We were accustomed to wearing masks and shields, long before COVID-19. We implemented all of the recommendations from our industry, state, and national health institutions and review them consistently.

The whole team takes and reports their temperature daily. If patients are at risk of COVID-19, we wear N95 masks and can convert the operating room into a negative-pressure room. All of these precautions ensure that we don’t transmit infections to patients and they don't transmit them to us. I feel really good about the precautions that we have put in place.

 

5. What would you like to share with people who postponed care because of COVID-19?

I would share that it is safe to come to the hospital, see your providers, and have surgeries done. Adequate precautions are in place, and they are not going anywhere. We, as a group, feel it's safe. We encourage patients who are apprehensive to ask a lot of questions. We want them to be as comfortable as we are about having their procedure done.

 

6. How do you feel about providing care during this time?

I feel comfortable and safe providing care at this time. The new precautions we have put in place really protect both patients and staff, and the quality of care we provide is as high as ever. 

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