Pumping at work

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Hello all,

I am a nurse on a very busy med surg floor. Despite this, I’ve adjusted my schedule enough that I am able to mitigate for the breast pumping I need to get done every 3 hours (mostly). To help I often chart, pump, and eat meals simultaneously.

Now there are two places I might pump: the Watson room, which is a private room off of the patient rooms, or progressive care nurses station which is an enclosed room as well. I more often choose the nurses station because it offers the desk space I need to multitask, i can shut the door and face the corner out of anyone’s line of sight, and because it has 3 computers so I can sit at any of those and chart. In either case I am fully covered at all times and most don’t even know what I’m doing. I’ve been doing this for 7 months and no one has had an issue with this.

Fast forward to today and a nurse that’s been gone for over a year has come back to work with us. Just as I was about to sit done and do my morning routine she asked me what I was about to do and when I told her she very matter of factly said “don’t do that here.” Out of respect and because I know some people feel a certain way about breastfeeding and pumping I slunk away to the Watson room but that has not stopped me from feeling some kind of way about it.

I mean, am I in the wrong here? Am I being inappropriate in some way and don’t realize it?

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Specializes in OB.
4 hours ago, newmom17 said:

Hello all,

I am a nurse on a very busy med surg floor. Despite this, I’ve adjusted my schedule enough that I am able to mitigate for the breast pumping I need to get done every 3 hours (mostly). To help I often chart, pump, and eat meals simultaneously.

Now there are two places I might pump: the Watson room, which is a private room off of the patient rooms, or progressive care nurses station which is an enclosed room as well. I more often choose the nurses station because it offers the desk space I need to multitask, i can shut the door and face the corner out of anyone’s line of sight, and because it has 3 computers so I can sit at any of those and chart. In either case I am fully covered at all times and most don’t even know what I’m doing. I’ve been doing this for 7 months and no one has had an issue with this.

Fast forward to today and a nurse that’s been gone for over a year has come back to work with us. Just as I was about to sit done and do my morning routine she asked me what I was about to do and when I told her she very matter of factly said “don’t do that here.” Out of respect and because I know some people feel a certain way about breastfeeding and pumping I slunk away to the Watson room but that has not stopped me from feeling some kind of way about it.

I mean, am I in the wrong here? Am I being inappropriate in some way and don’t realize it?

No, you are not in the wrong. You are legally entitled to pumping breaks and your facility is required to provide you with a space to do so. If your superiors are OK with you using the nurse's station, don't pay that nurse any mind. Your baby's health is more important that one nurse's opinion of you. If other people "feel a certain way" about breastfeeding and pumping that is their problem.

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Your co-worker is a git.

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1 hour ago, Wuzzie said:

Your co-worker is a git.

Nope... I'd say she's a pig.

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Specializes in Nursing Professional Development.

For your protection ... I recommend that you ask your manager (or whoever) ... where they would like you to pump. That way, if anyone has a problem with it, you can honestly tell them that you are doing it according to the instructions you have received from the management.

"Right or wrong" isn't the only point here. You probably also want to not make enemies that may cause you problems in the future. And getting your Manager's support may also smooth the way for other nursing moms in the future.

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Specializes in Nurse Leader specializing in Labor & Delivery.

Next time squirt her in the eye.

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Specializes in ICU, trauma, neuro.

Here's the thing there is probably nothing that can be done to offer more benefit to infants than breast feeding them. It has a profoundly positive influence on essentially all aspects of infant health. It isn't just the law it is the right thing to do, and if ever something deserved special arrangements it is breastfeeding (I would go so far as to say that we need at least six months paid time off as a national priority for mothers to encourage bonding and breastfeeding). Whoever said that to you is either ignorant or deserves my doXXXX-bXX of the month award.

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Specializes in Psych (25 years), Medical (15 years).
On 7/8/2019 at 9:14 AM, newmom17 said:

Now there are two places I might pump: the Watson room, which is a private room off of the patient rooms, or

...the Holmes Room?

Seriously, newmom, I never use real names in any way in any of my posts because I'm afraid of possible repercussions.

Like klone squirting me in the eye.

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Specializes in ICU, trauma, neuro.
1 minute ago, Davey Do said:

The Holmes Room?

Seriously, newmom, I never use real names in any way in any of my posts because I'm afraid of repercussions.

Like klone squirting me in the eye.

That's probably good advice. I've actually listed my hospital, and floor on multiple occasions. My normal attitude is scXXX the repercussions I don't say anything here that I don't rant about at work often to my supervisors face, which is probably why my SO ends up banning me from posting for years at a time.

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There probably jealous because you are able to take the breaks to do it.

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On 7/8/2019 at 1:26 PM, llg said:

For your protection ... I recommend that you ask your manager (or whoever) ... where they would like you to pump. That way, if anyone has a problem with it, you can honestly tell them that you are doing it according to the instructions you have received from the management.

"Right or wrong" isn't the only point here. You probably also want to not make enemies that may cause you problems in the future. And getting your Manager's support may also smooth the way for other nursing moms in the future.

I assumed you ran this by your supervisors to begin with. That is what I would have done.

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I would talk to my manager. Outline exactly what you have been doing, the ways you have minimized the interruptions to your shift and the fact that Nurse *** has complained. Let your manager either tell you that you need to change your routine or let her deal with telling Nurse *** to mind her own business and worry about herself.

I have had a colleague come to me before me and tell me to be careful as Nurse Busybody has a serious problem with the way I do X and is considering reporting me to the Unit Manager. Funny thing is the Unit Manager was well aware how I was doing X and had been at the bedside with me (for totally unrelated reasons) many times while I preformed X. Fact is there was nothing wrong with what I was doing, Nurse Busybody was just a Busybody who liked to micro manager other people. I ignored the well intended warning and continued on my way and nothing was ever said.

Given that all the people you have been working with for the past 7 months don't appear to have a problem I would say the problem is Nurse *** and hopefully your manager will tell her so.

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