LifeCare, Inc. Announces the Implementation of Workplace Breastfeeding Program For Saatchi & Saatchi.

Business Editors/Health & Human Resources Writers

WESTPORT, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 10, 2002

New initiative is a result of employee needs assessment

and projected impact on bottom line

LifeCare(R), Inc., a leading provider of Life Event ManagementSM Services, today announced it was chosen to implement its leading workplace breastfeeding program, Mothers at Work(R), for Saatchi & Saatchi.

The new program reflects Saatchi & Saatchi's ongoing commitment to fostering a supportive work environment for employees throughout its organization. The Saatchi & Saatchi initiatives include providing employees with access to around-the-clock pre- and postnatal lactation counseling by certified lactation consultants, a comprehensive website on breastfeeding, on-site breastfeeding classes, high-quality breastpumping equipment, and an on-site Mother's room for pumping.

"Saatchi & Saatchi's greatest asset has always been its people," said Mike Burns, Managing Partner, Saatchi & Saatchi. "As 65% of our employees are women, it was essential to include access to LifeCare's Mothers at Work program as part of our overall wellness program."

In making its decision, Saatchi & Saatchi reviewed its successful track record using LifeCare's other Life Event Management programs, as well as LifeCare's ability to integrate with other work/life, wellness and health programs. "After many successful years using LifeCare's adult and child care referral services, we knew they would be the right choice to provide the most comprehensive and responsive workplace breastfeeding program available," added Burns.

As part of the company's efforts to consistently retain and attract the best and the brightest employees, Saatchi & Saatchi is focused on offering a value-added benefits package that helps improve employee morale, productivity and efficiency. "We recognize that when challenges arise in one aspect of life, competence and well being in other areas may be affected. Our goal at Saatchi & Saatchi is to provide support to our employees as they fulfill their diverse roles so they may be most effective in their work and satisfied in their lives," said Burns.

"More than 50 percent of American women who are employed when they become pregnant will return to the labor force by the time their children are three months old," said Carol Ann Friedman, RN, IBCLC, Program Director for Mothers at Work at LifeCare. "And eighty-three percent of new mothers are back at work by the time their babies are six months old. Since the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that babies be breastfed for 12 months, more and more women are facing the challenge of combining nursing and working, the number one barrier to a successful breastfeeding experience. Many companies find that childbirth-related expenses often are their single largest health care cost and that parental absenteeism due to infant illness is three times greater among the parents of formula-fed babies. Breastfed infants are healthier, resulting in reduced health care costs and absenteeism," said Friedman.

Implemented in the fall of this year, The Mothers at Work program has already helped Saatchi & Saatchi ease the stress on new mothers returning to work. "I think it's a wonderful idea to have facilities for breast milk expression as well as support from professionals," said Greta Tristam, a Saatchi & Saatchi employee. "As a working mother, I know that expressing milk is a task that requires support, privacy and perseverance, and it's tempting for new mothers who don't have the luxury of the program to give up expressing milk and go to formula."

LifeCare's comprehensive Mothers at Work program provides prenatal education, 24-hour, 7 day-a-week counseling services by LifeCare's International Board Certified Lactation Consultants, and all the tools employers need to implement a turn-key lactation program, including breast pumps and pumping accessories, consultation on mothers' room design, and manager training. Mothers at Work is designed to ease the nursing employee's transition back to work so that employers, working mothers and babies benefit. Employers see reduced medical claims and health care costs. Working mothers reap the medical benefits of breastfeeding and receive the support they need to continue nursing. Perhaps most importantly, babies receive optimal nutrition needed for growth, development and overall health.

About Saatchi & Saatchi

Saatchi & Saatchi's global marketing and creative communications network includes 138 offices in 82 countries and annual billings of more than $7 billion. It believes in world-changing creative ideas that transform its clients' businesses, brands and reputations. Among the agency's list of multinational clients are Toyota, Procter & Gamble, Johnson & Johnson, General Mills, Eastman Kodak and Dupont.

About LifeCare(R), Inc.

LifeCare, Inc. is a human services organization specializing in Life Event ManagementSM. With more than 17 years of experience in delivering highly personalized resource and referral services through the use of innovative technology, LifeCare helps employees manage the day-to-day challenges of their lives and the lives of their families. In turn, the company helps employers improve productivity, recruitment, retention and workplace commitment. LifeCare currently serves 1,200 companies and organizations, representing nearly 4 million employees. The company's URL is www.lifecare.com.