Nursing study states new moms are being sent to Gulf too soon

Associate Nursing Professor Lorraine Tulman labeled the Army's recent call-up of the pair as "outrageous," from a medical standpoint. Tulman's research, which studied approximately 200 women for six months after childbirth, concluded that the uterus takes at least six weeks to heal and that bleeding may continue for an additional five weeks -- indicating the mother is not physically ready to resume active schedules. Associate Nursing Professor Barbara Medoff-Cooper also said that the separation of the infant from the mother so soon after childbirth could cause problems when the two are reunited later. "The baby won't remember the mother," Medoff-Cooper said in a statement. "It will be more difficult for the two to establish the typical mother-child bonds." The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health and The Organization for Obstetric, Gynecologic, and Neonatal Nurses and revealed a great deal about the recovery from childbirth, Tulman said. The findings state that by six weeks after birth, only 51 percent of the mothers had regained their normal energy level and only 34 percent of those who had a Caesarean birth regained their normal energy levels. In addition, 80 percent of the women in one section of the study said they did not resume their normal personal care activities until six months after childbirth. Tulman said that the study indicates that the recovery from childbirth requires at least three to six months. "[The military] probably wouldn't send a man into combat two weeks after abdominal surgery," Tulman added. Medoff-Cooper's research is funded by the American Academy of Pediatrics. She said in a statement that the mother-child relationship is vital during the first year. "The first year of a baby's life is most important because it is the time when a baby learns trust," Medoff-Cooper said. "The quality of the caregiver at this time is crucial." The research comes at a time when Congress is considering a national maternal leave policy. President Bush vetoed similar proposed legislation last year. Tulman said that her research clearly indicates that the military should adopt a policy allowing "for at least 3 months without a complicated application process."

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