Breastfeeding is never “All or Nothing”

Breastfeeding is never "All or Nothing"

“This isn’t how I thought this would be”. Have you ever found yourself thinking as much? Breastfeeding doesn't always go according to how you planned. Maybe you planned to latch only and didn’t want to pump but found latch was difficult and you had to pump. Perhaps there was a birth trauma and the baby wasn’t able to latch and you had to pump to establish production. What if medical complications required supplementation? You may have returned to work earlier than you planned. Whatever the reason, it's important to understand that breastfeeding doesn't have to be "all or nothing." Every drop of breastmilk counts, and you are a breastfeeding parent by providing breast milk no matter how long you are able to do it, no matter if you latch or pump, and no matter whether you supplement or not. How you feed your baby does not define your success as a parent. 

Those early days and weeks are important to establishing breast milk production so early education and intervention is key. Take prenatal breastfeeding classes, in person or online. Learn techniques for latch and positioning. Locate your resources ahead of time. Find pediatricians that support breastfeeding and have breastfeeding resources available in their office for moms. And last, find your support team. Navigating the world with a new baby can be tough. Having support is crucial to success. 

Whatever your breastfeeding journey looks like, we are here for it all - latching, pumping, supplementing, and weaning. 

 

stephanie glover, lpn

Post Author:

Stephanie Glover, LPN, IBCLC (Board Certified Lactation Consultant)

Contact Stephanie:  Send a Portal Message

Phone: 910-892-1333

Visit our Breastfeeding Services page

Miranda McGee, PA-C

picture of Miranda McGee, PA-C

Miranda McGee, PA-C

Miranda McGee, PA-C was born and raised in Knightdale, North Carolina. She graduated from Campbell University with a Bachelors in Biology and then a Masters in Physician Assistant Practice making her a “double hump” camel. With experience in family medicine and pediatrics, she feels called to continue working in pediatrics. Miranda is honored to work with families providing care for their children as if they were her own. She enjoys spending time with her wonderful husband, serving at church, and traveling.

Kayla R. Darkow, PA-C

picture of Kayla R. Darkow, PA-C

Kayla R. Darkow, PA-C

Kayla R. Darkow, PA-C was born and raised in Norwood, NC.  She attended Campbell University for her undergraduate degree in Biology as well as her Masters of Physician Assistant Practice. She joined ABC Pediatrics in August, 2023 with previous experience in outpatient psychiatry. She looks forward to serving the pediatric community. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her husband and being with friends.

This is our Why! Celebrating National Breastfeeding Month 2023

This is our Why! Celebrating National Breastfeeding Month 2023

Breastfeeding is a personal feeding choice, and yet it is often a topic of public discussion. Although natural, breastfeeding may come with challenges, some we prepare for and some we can’t. From the first time mom to the mom who has breastfed before, every pregnancy and every baby is different and therefore every feeding journey is different. Everyone, from our family, our neighbor, and even a stranger in the supermarket, loves to give advice on how, when, and what to feed those cute new babies but often that’s where the support ends. Over the past 70 years, the support women receive after childbirth has changed.  At one time, a new mom, regardless if it was her first child or her 10th, had a village of support with other mothers, grandmothers, aunt, sisters, and neighbors who supported her in those early days to rest and establish that coveted breastfeeding bond. Over time and with changes in society and culture, that level of support is no longer guaranteed and is often considered a luxury. And with those changes, support for new moms is more valuable than ever, regardless of feeding choice. 

 

August is National Breastfeeding Month,  with August 1st-7th designated as World Breastfeeding Week. The theme for this year is “This is Our Why”. This month we celebrate our successes, no matter how small, we share our driving force, our motivation to push through those early challenges to continue breastfeeding in any form. We share our resources and empower families to make informed feeding choices. Join us in celebrating our successes and challenges by visiting our Facebook page and sharing your why! You can also comment directly on this blog post.

 

stephanie glover, lpn

Post Author:

Stephanie Glover, LPN, IBCLC (Board Certified Lactation Consultant)

Contact Stephanie:  Send a Portal Message

Phone: 910-892-1333

Visit our Breastfeeding Services page

Stephanie Glover, LPN, IBCLC

picture of stephanie glover, IBCLC

Stephanie Glover, LPN, IBCLC (Board Certified Lactation Consultant)

Stephanie is a Harnett County native and a previous patient at ABC Pediatrics. She attended nursing school at Central Carolina Community College and began work at ABC Pediatrics in 2008. She has worked beside many providers during her 14 years as a nurse at ABC Pediatrics. Always a breastfeeding advocate, she attended Wichita State University in 2011 and NC State University in 2022 to earn her board certification as a Lactation Consultant. As a board certified lactation consultant, her special interests are with first time moms, extended or natural term breastfeeding, infant oral rehabilitation, infant movement and bodywork, and infant feeding and development. Her other areas of interests are in holistic and natural/alternative therapies in breastfeeding.  She works with all breastfeeding mothers and babies throughout their time breastfeeding. She is a certified yoga instructor and loves to spend her time with family on road trips and adventures when not at work. She has been a member of the North Carolina Breastfeeding Coalition since 2019.

All About The ABC Patient Portal

THANK YOU ABC FAMILY!

We are so excited to announce nearly 3,500 patient portal accounts have been activated! Thank you for the confidence you've placed in us and for allowing us to communicate with you in a new way!

As you might know, calls have drastically increased for our office due to an increase in sickness in the community. And, while our multi-line phone system is very nice and allows many more calls to come in, busy signals have been replaced by longer hold times and voicemail pickups. To assist in alternative, efficient and secure communication, the patient portal was implemented to maximize our ability to respond efficiently to our  families.

Users of our PATIENT PORTAL are able to do the following:

  • View LAB RESULTS
  • Request an APPOINTMENT
  • Review Upcoming APPOINTMENT DETAILS
  • Send MESSAGES/QUESTIONS to our staff
  • SEND/RECEIVE FORMS
  • Make PAYMENTS to your account
  • And MUCH MORE!

View our Patient Portal FAQ's below

picture of ABC patient portal on desktop

View on Desktop

picture of patient portal on mobile

View on Mobile

If you have a current patient portal account or plan to activate one, the following Questions and Answers might help.

Q~ How do I request an INVITATION to the patient portal?
A~ > Complete a PORTAL INVITE FORM.  Click here: https://abcpediatrics.org/forms/

> Submitting your invite form from the link securely submits your request to us. We'll respond quickly.

> Wait for your portal invitation from us via email. Once received, parents/guardians or patients over age 18 should verify their details as prompted. Example: If Mom is requesting an invite for her child(ren), the platform will require Mom's first and last name, date of birth and zip code.  DO  NOT use the PATIENT's Name.

> Once proper verification is made, a username and password is set up by the user.

> That's it! The new portal account is ready to use!


Q~ How do I access my secure PATIENT PORTAL ACCOUNT?
A~ Log in with your username & password at: www.myhealthrecord.com

Q~ How do I COMMUNICATE with the ABC Pediatrics' staff?
A~ Click the "My Messages" Icon.
> Click "NEW" to create a message to us.
> Select "NO PREFERENCE" in the provider field.
(This ensures the message always goes to a member of the healthcare team logged in to our EHR software at the time that the message is sent. Selecting specific healthcare team members might delay messages because if that provider or healthcare team member is not in the office at the time that the message is sent, the message would not be reviewed until that provider or team member is back in the office.)
> Choose from the pull down menu for  "I would like to...."
> ask a medical question
> request a medical record
> ask an insurance question
> ask a general question
> Provide a few words about your request in the "How can we help you? field.
> Provide any additional information in the "Anything else you would like us to know?" field.
> Attach a file? Ex. picture of a rash, school form
        (Blue button directly below the two fields above.)
> Click SEND to submit the message to our staff.
> Monitor your email for our notice that we have responded to your request and there is a message waiting for your attention in the portal.

Q~ How do I request a PRESCRIPTION REFILL?
A~ > Under "My Health", click Medications then "Request Medication Refill"
     > Select the appropriate medication from the history.
     > Confirm Pharmacy
     > Provide any additional information in the "Anything else you would like us to know?" field.
     > Click Submit to send your refill request to our staff.
     > Monitor your email for our notice that we have responded to your request and there is a message waiting for your attention in the portal.

Q~ How do I request an APPOINTMENT?
A ~ > Click My Appointments, then "Request", then "New"
      > Complete prompts: Provider?,  How soon?,  Day of the week?,  Time Preference?
      > Select from the "What is most important to you?" field.
        > Physician
          > Day
          > Time
      > Complete the Reason for visit field.
      > SUBMIT your request.
      > Monitor your email for our notice that we have responded to your request and there is a message waiting for your attention in the portal.

Q~ How do I pay a bill?
A~ > Click "PAY MY BILL"
     > Click the blue "pay my bill" button to transition to our payment partner, Instamed.
     > Complete the "Make A Payment" window:
        > email
        > patient ID
        > last name
        > zip
      > Click PAY NOW.
      > Monitor your email for our notice that we have received your payment.

Benefits of Breastfeeding for Mom and Baby

Happy World Breastfeeding Month!

Every year in August we celebrate World Breastfeeding Month! In addition to the full month, there's also a Breastfeeding week that runs the first week in August traditionally. This year it ran August 1th through August 7th. In order to raise some awareness of the benefits of breastfeeding, ABC Pediatrics' own Dr. Mary Ann Chiodo provided some benefits of breastfeeding for both Mom and Baby!

Breastfeeding Benefits for BABY:

- access to nutrients that strengthen baby's immune system
- breast milk contains perfect nutrition- exactly the right proteins, fat, vitamins, minerals and other elements for baby's growth and development
- better response to immunizations against Polio, Tetanus, Dipththeria and Haemophilus influendza
- better oral development due to jaw movements, nutrients in breast milk decrease risk of tooth decay
- lowers risk of allergies
- lowers risk of obesity and diabetes
- lowers risk of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome)
- lowers risk of ear infections and gastroenteritis
- enhances baby's brain development
- better protection against respiratory infections including those cause by rotaviruses
- reduced risk of hospitalizations with pneumonia and bronchiolitis
- enhance performance on cognitive development tests

Breastfeeding Benefits for MOM:

- reduces mom's risk of ovarian, uterine and breast cancer, as well as osteoporosis
- helps mom burn up to and extra 500 calories a day
- reduces post-delivery bleeding and the chances of mom developing anemia
- breast milk is free, convenient, sterile, the correct temperature and environmentally friendly

picture of baby and mom

Breastfeeding is a commitment and investment in health for both mom and baby. ABC Pediatrics offers support through specialized education, encouragement and expert staff. Please reach out to us for all your breastfeeding questions!

Call: 910-892-1333


ABC voted Best Pediatric Clinic in Best of Harnett 2022 Competition!

Thanks for your Votes!

We are super proud to announce this year’s 2022 Best of Harnett results. Due to all your support and votes, ABC Pediatrics has once again been voted Best Pediatric Clinic in Harnett County!

We also won several other accolades this year including some wonderful individual awards as well.

🥇🥈🥉They are as follows:

Practice Awards

  • 1st Place- Best Pediatric Clinic
  • 1st Place- Best Medical Facility
  • 3rd Place- Best Customer Service

Individual Awards

  • 2nd place Best Pediatrician-Dr. Mary Ann Chiodo, MD
  • 2nd Place Best Dr/PA-Rhonda Torchio, PA-C
  • 3rd Place Best Pediatrician-Rhonda Torchio, PA-C

Help us congratulate our team and individuals in comments!👏

🙏We would like to sincerely thank all of you that voted in this year’s competition. We obviously could not celebrate this without you! Your ABC Family looks forward to servicing your healthcare needs in the 22/23 year ahead!

Sincerely, The ABC Staff and Team 🩺

🔗Full online magazine link from The Daily Record website:Special Edition Best of Harnett Magazine Link

rhonda torchio best of harnett county awards

ABC’s “Star of the Week” Program on Social Media!

Hey Abc Fam! We are starting a new program where we will highlight members of our ABC Family’s achievements on social media. 💫📸 They will be recognized as our “ABC Social Star of the Week!” 🤩
✳️ Here’s how it works:
1. Submit your child’s achievement using our form located here:
https://form.jotform.com/221984778487983

2. We will post one kid a week on our Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. If they happen to have their own social media, provide those links using the form and we can try to tag them and/or you the parent(s) as well.

3. Achievements can include really anything you are proud of, so long as it took place RECENTLY and outside of your home activities. Additionally, your child should have been awarded or selected by someone other than yourselves. (Unless you’re a Coach or Teacher, for example, that was responsible!)

4. Please understand that we will work on posting each child, but the posts will be organized by the time they were received and also, at times, the accolade they received.

That’s it for now! We will see where the program goes from here. We are looking forward to seeing some submissions!
Sincerely,
The Abc Staff and Team 🩺😊

Schedule your Wellness Visits for the 2023-24 School Year!

It’s School Preparation Time at ABC Pediatrics!

Our staff is READY to help school-age students complete all the requirements for their health assessments for the 2023 – 2024 School Year!

Every year we face a flood of appointment requests in the two to three weeks leading up to the first day of school for physicals, medication management, and immunization updates. Unfortunately, we cannot often accommodate the last minute requests because our providers schedules fill up quickly as the new school year approaches.

Why would I do this now!?

  • If you come in now, it's a major step out of the way when school is closing in, taking this off your plate.

  • If any potential issues arise from the checkup, you've got more time to resolve them!

  • Because patients are less sick during the summer months, our providers are less busy at the moment. This ensures you will be able to schedule with who you want to see, and most likely, choose the time and day that works best for your family.

  • Insurance companies are becoming very strict about ensuring patients get preventative services every year. Summertime is the absolute best opportunity to get this requirement taken care of.

Not sure when your child is due for a physical or a maintenance visit?  Our staff is available to check your child’s visit history, immunization status, and discuss just what he/she may need for the upcoming school year.

Call TODAY!  (910) 892-1333

Below is a list of services provided by our ABC Pediatrics’ Health Care Team that may be performed to ensure he/she is ready for school!

  • Check to see how tall he/she is
  • Check his/her weight
  • Check his/her Blood Pressure  
  • Obtain a urine specimen and a small sample of blood from him/her for lab testing
  • Test his/her hearing
  • Check his/her ability to see by performing acuity and depth perception vision assessments
  • Review responses to age-appropriate questions to evaluate and confirm his/her readiness for school
  • Review current medication regimens and if needed, provide refills
  • Perform an EKG (measures heart activity)
  • Perform Spirometry (lung capacity and function) test
  • Perform a complete physical exam to make sure he/she is healthy
  • Make recommendations that will allow for the best possible school year performance
  • Administer any necessary and required vaccines
  • Complete his/her required school forms
  • Give stickers, hugs and best wishes to him/her for a fantastic year in school!