Pauline O'Reilly (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

Today, I would like to raise the issue of the redeployment of lactation consultants, which many of us will be aware of. What is really important to understand is that this is in the context of having only four community lactation consultants in the whole country. It is also in the context of some hospitals having part-time lactation consultants within the hospitals themselves. There is the figure of 18 hours in University Hospital Galway, UHG, in terms of lactation consultant. This is not elective treatment. This is not something that can be put off until the end of a pandemic. This is often essential medical help.

We also have an over-medicalised birth system in this country where 45% of first-time mothers are having a caesarean. That is well above the average internationally. That is a massive figure. I had a caesarean and we rely on the medical experts to tell us whether it is necessary or not but I think the statistics stand on their own two feet and show us that something has gone wrong. After a caesarean birth and after induction with syntocinon, it is very clear from the research that it is incredibly difficult to breastfeed. People need support and we now have a system where a woman does not even have her partner in the hospital. Then she is locked away in her home without the supports most of us here who are mothers would have had and she has no access to a community lactation consultant. I believe that as of last night another lactation consultant has been redeployed.

This comes down to a failure to implement the national maternity strategy and a failure in relation to infant health. Some 75% of women say they want to breastfeed and yet only 37.3% come out of hospital breastfeeding. Something is going wrong and now in the pandemic we are making even more mistakes.

I urge the Minister for Health to engage with all of the organisations concerned. Over the last few days, I have spoken to the Association for Improvements in the Maternity Services Ireland, AIMS, the Association of Lactation Consultants Ireland, ALCI, La Leche League, Cuidiú and Friends of Breastfeeding Ireland. I ask the Minister to do the same and understand that all of these people who are engaged with voluntary services are without exception mothers who are home-schooling children as well. They are managing during the pandemic to give up their free time because the State is not putting in place the proper supports for women and babies. This will have a long-term impact on their health.