August 3, 2018
T he C olumbia P ress
Hospital’s lactation program wins high marks
Local moms Krista Hicks,
Jessica Barrett and Kath-
ryn Olson agree: They might
have given up on breast-
feeding if they hadn’t gotten
help.
While breastfeeding may
seem like a natural function,
the three first-time moms
all had problems develop af-
ter giving birth at Columbia
Memorial Hospital.
With the help of the hospi-
tal’s Lactation Program and
Family Birthing Center staff,
each woman had success.
The lactation program re-
cently received the Interna-
tional Board Certified Lacta-
tion Consultant Care Award
for the fourth two-year term.
The award honors hospi-
tals and other birthing facili-
ties with dedicated lactation
support programs.
Olson’s daughter was born
six weeks early and lacked
the muscle tone to draw
enough milk. Being so small,
she also had trouble staying
awake to nurse.
Within 24 hours of her
birth, lactation consulants
Laura Brown and Kelsey
Betts were offering sup-
port, Olson said. “In the
months following her birth,
we saw them at least once a
week, and we worked with
Kathryn Olson
credits Columbia
Memorial Hos-
pital’s Lactation
Program with the
positive out-
come she had
in breastfeeding
her daughter.
Courtesy CMH
my baby to help her learn to
nurse more efficiently. They
gave me a sense of stability
and hope during a very diffi-
cult time.”
Olson’s daughter is now
6 months old. While Olson
pumps most of her milk be-
cause she’s back at work, she
nurses “10 times better,” Ol-
son said.
Barrett’s daughter had sim-
ilar problems.
From weight check appoint-
ments and help with pump-
ing to the development of a
nursing routine, the lactation
program gave her the advice
and support she needed.
“My second (baby) was
much easier to nurse from
the get-go, and I think we
could have struggled through
it,” Barrett said, “but with
the support of the Lactation
Department, it was a much
easier journey.”
With the stress of being
a new mom, the hospital’s
“clean, warm and quiet” lac-
tation room offered a sense
of relaxation.
Hicks echoed Barrett’s
thoughts.
The routine was time con-
suming, and “at times, a
downright pain in the butt,”
she said. But it was worth it
because her daughter quick-
ly regained a lost pound and
had more success nursing.
“For every issue, Laura
was there for me, even with-
out an appointment,” Hicks
said. “She would call me
and talk me through what
I needed to do to remedy
whatever ailment I had at
the time. Day or night, she
was there to help.”
5
State offers free class for caregivers
A free class for those who
take care of older adults is set
for 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Mon-
day, Aug. 6, in the meeting
room at Comfort Suites, 3420
Leif Erickson Drive, Astoria.
“Communicating with Adults
Without Dementia” is present-
ed by Oregon Care Partners, a
caregiver training organiza-
tion funded by the state.
The course is designed to
help those who care for the el-
derly communicate with them
more effectively. It will pro-
vide strategies for dealing with
challenging behaviors such as
anger and withdrawing.
It’s open to individuals,
family members, professional
caregivers, social workers and
those in public safety fields.
To register, go online to ore-
goncarepartners.com.
State may repeal boathouse titling law
Oregon State Marine Board
seeks written public testimo-
ny to repeal a state adminis-
trative rule on issuance and
duplicate fees relating to
floating home and boathouse
title and plate fees.
Repeal of the rule will en-
sure consistency with state
statutes following a legisla-
tive.
Written testimony can be
submitted to osmb.rulemak-
ing@oregon.gov or to Admin-
istrative rules coordinator,
Oregon State Marine Board,
435 Commercial St. NE, Sa-
lem OR 97301.
Officer successfully talks down suicidal man
A Warrenton man was ar-
rested after an early morning
argument turned violent.
Police first were called to a
residence in the 500 block of
Northwest Cedar Court for a
domestic dispute about 4:30
a.m. July 24.
The parties agreed to sepa-
rate, but the man returned an
hour later.
Again, police were called
and the male agreed to leave
after speaking with officers.
But the man returned again
about 10:30 a.m. and, at
some point, the couple phys-
ically struggled over a cell
phone when he saw her tex-
ting someone.
The wife received an injury
to the arm.
She was holding one of their
young children at the time,
according to a probable cause
declaration written by Officer
Aaron Berndt.
The wife called police and
reported he had a gun, was
threatening suicide and was
leaving in a red truck.
When Berndt arrived, the
husband was driving toward
him.
He backed up and got out
of the truck with a gun to his
head, the officer wrote.
“I negotiated with him for
approximately seven min-
utes to put the gun down.
Eventually, he did and I took
him into custody for a police
officer mental hold,” Berndt
wrote.
Derek Alan Cleveland, 34,
of Warrenton was booked at
Clatsop County Jail on suspi-
cion of felony assault.
2111 Exchange St., Astoria, Oregon • 503-325-4321
www.columbiamemorial.org • A Planetree-Designated Hospital