Author: Galactablog

Free Webinar: Business Case for Breastfeeding

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floridaDo you want to learn how to promote and support breastfeeding-friendly businesses in your community? Do you have businesses contacting you, asking how they can become more breastfeeding-friendly? If so, you may be interested to know that the Florida Breastfeeding Coalition, Inc. is hosting a FREE webinar on Tuesday, January 20, 2015 at 12:00 PM EST.

From Florida Breastfeeding Coalition, Inc – Learn about DHHS new platform of tools to use to promote and support employers being breastfeeding friendly. Focus on rejuvenating Florida’s Business Case for Breastfeeding efforts to get more businesses on board with becoming a Breastfeeding Friendly Employer. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar. 

FREE 4 Part Webinar Series: “Respectful Care & Support for LGBTQ Clients & Colleagues”

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nurses in the know

As lactation specialists and those aspiring to be, it’s essential that we’re trained to offer respectful care, encouragement and support to everyone who needs our help and to be sensitive to individual needs. Check out this FREE 4 part webinar series on providing “Respectful Care and Support for LGBTQ Clients and Colleagues.”
Information below taken directly from email webinar announcement:
The International Affairs and Best Practice Guidelines Centre is pleased to partner with members of the Rainbow Nursing Interest Group to provide an informative webinar series on Respectful Care and Support for LGBTQ Clients and Colleagues. This series will consist of 4 interrelated webinars – each session will build and expand on the content contained in the previous sessions. The webinars will be archived following each session.
Part 1 – Introduction to LGBTQ culture and terminology
Jan. 14, 2015 – 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
Part 2 – Reflecting on personal attitudes and values
Feb. 4, 2015 – 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
Part 3  – Every space a positive space
Feb. 25, 2015 – 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
Part 4  – More on supporting trans clients and colleagues
March 25, 2015 – 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
Respectful Care and Support for LGBTQ Clients and Colleagues Webinar Series
Participant Objectives:
  • Increased understanding of the historical oppression of LGBTQ people in Canada and its effect on health and wellness
  • Reflection on personal attitudes in order to create increased empathy and sensitivity towards LGBTQ people increased knowledge of LGBTQ culture and history
  • Increased knowledge of inclusive language and terminology
  • Increased clinical knowledge and skills for serving LGBTQ people
  • Increased knowledge about how to make their health care setting a “Positive Space”

The webinar is hosted by the RNAO and RNIG’s Dianne Roedding and Jean Clipsham.

To register for Part 1 of the series: https://rnao.webex.com/rnao/onstage/g.php?d=666906136&t=a

To register for Part 2 of the series: https://rnao.webex.com/rnao/onstage/g.php?d=666056005&t=a

To register for Part 3 of the series: https://rnao.webex.com/rnao/onstage/g.php?d=669907915&t=a

To register for Part 4 of the series: https://rnao.webex.com/rnao/onstage/g.php?d=665139505&t=a

Lactation Program Review: Healthy Children’s Lactation Counselor Training Course & CLC Certification

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Lactation Program Review: 

Healthy Children’s Center for Breastfeeding’s  

Lactation Counselor Training Course

By Falen Pope

January, 2015

How long did it take you to complete the program? 1 week

Certification or Certificate Offered – Certified Lactation Counselor (CLC)

Delivery of Program – In-person

Books & Materials Required – The Pocket Guide for Lactation Management by Karin Cadwell, 2nd edition (can be purchased on Amazon from about $25-$35 or purchased at class for $55). A course guide with an outline of all instruction along with a resource appendix is free and included in course costs.

Cost of Program (Including books, materials, application fees, etc.) – $730-800

# of L-CERPs, Nursing Contact Hours, CEUs, CPEs, etc. offered – 45 Nursing contact hours, L-CERPs, CPEs; 4.5 CEUs for CNMs

What did you like about the program?

Having locations all over the United States made it easy to find a time and place that worked for me. The instructors were quite knowledgeable and experienced. They were very open to receiving questions both during instruction and during break times. The assignments allowed for some practical application of what was learned and were able to be completed during break times. The information given was evidence-based and provided me with a base knowledge for my lactation studies. This course and training also instilled in me the confidence to work with mothers within the CLC scope of practice.

What did you dislike about the program?

I would have preferred more active learning. A lot of the instruction took place while we were just sitting. I felt the assignments provided active learning but not enough of it. I would’ve liked more.

How rigorous/time consuming did you find the program?

The program was easy for me because I don’t work in the summer. On the other hand, taking off a full week could be difficult for someone working full-time. I would not have been able to do it during the school year as I teach full time. The training location was about 3 hours away from me, so I stayed in a hotel. I’m still breastfeeding my son, so I brought him along with me because I didn’t want to leave him for an entire week. My mother joined us to help me out. It was temporarily difficult for that single week, but then I was finished and I didn’t have to worry about continued hours of instruction or homework.

Would you recommend this program to others?

Yes. I would recommend this program to someone wanting to expand their lactation knowledge and to obtain a certification to use in their current or desired field like nurses, educators or volunteers. I would also recommend this program to those who prefer to do their studies and instruction in-person rather than online. For someone aspiring to be an IBCLC and to sit for the IBCLC exam, this program fulfills part of the lactation education requirement.

Knowing what you know now, would you take this program again? Yes, I would.

Do you feel the course and/or certification helped you obtain your goals?

Yes, I do. I am working towards becoming an IBCLC. The CLC certification has enabled me to start a peer support group for breastfeeding mothers at my school.

Does your program/credential require you to recertify? If so, how long does the credential last and what is required to recertify? My CLC credential lasts is good for 3 years. Recertification takes 18 hours of continuing education.

Would you like to write a review of a Lactation Training Program that you’ve taken? If so, don’t be shy! You can access the review form directly from Galactablog. Or directly online via Google Forms here.

**Disclaimer – The views and opinions expressed in this review are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Galactablog. It’s also important to note that these views are not the only source of information about this particular lactation training program. See here for more program details on Healthy Children’s Lactation Counselor Training Course, along with comparison of similar Lactation Training Programs. If you’re interested in Lactation Training Programs that offer a clinical practice component, see here.

Let’s do the Flipple!

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Do you have a mother who is struggling with a shallow latch? Or perhaps she has sore, cracked and/or bleeding nipples? Do you feel like you’ve gone through your bag of tricks and are running out of ideas? Check out the “flipple” technique by Wagonbird on Youtube. It takes some practice, so practice with yourself or your fake breast before encouraging others to try it. Personally, several of my clients have told me the the “flipple” has saved their breastfeeding experience. So why not give it a try?

Check out Galactablog’s Youtube “Breastfeeding Tricks” Playlist for more variations on the “flipple” technique.

Free Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine (ABM) Clinical Protocols (Handouts)

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abm_logoAs a lactation specialist who does lots of hospital consultations abroad, I’ve found the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine’s (ABM) Clinical Protocols to be extremely helpful – particularly in instances where physicians and/or other healthcare professionals are giving recommendations or advice that will create impediments or “booby traps” for breastfeeding. Having evidence-based research at your fingertips not only assists the breastfeeding families seeking your help and expertise but can perhaps educate a few healthcare professionals along the way as well.

The clinical protocols are offered in several different languages (English, German, Spanish, Korean and Japanese) and cover a whole range of breastfeeding-related topics including supplementation, jaundice, milk storage, galactogogues, mastitis, engorgement, use of anti-depressants, model hospital policy, hypoglycemia, etc.). You can find all of the clinical protocols here.

Free WHO Training Course on Child Growth Assessment

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The World Health Organization (WHO)WHO is offering a free Training Course on Child Growth Assessment. It is geared towards health professionals and is available completely online. WHO points out that this training course:

“It is intended primarily for health care providers who measure and assess the growth of children or who supervise these activities. The course is designed for use over 3 1/2 days. It teaches how to measure weight, length and height, how to interpret growth indicators, investigate causes of growth problems and counsel caregivers.”

Click here to access the course modules and growth records.

Course director’s and facilitator’s resource files can be found here.

This is a fantastic resource for lactation specialists or those aspiring to be. Definitely don’t miss out on this free educational opportunity. As lactation specialists, we need to be able to read and interpret the WHO growth charts to ensure breastfeeding is going smoothly, infants are getting enough milk and growing properly. Additionally, we need to be able to explain the results to the families we work with and to be able to catch underlying issues before they become problematic.

Free Breastfeeding Handouts for Lactation Professionals & Parents

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LERLactation Education Resources (LER) has a wide variety of handouts available.

Best yet, they are free and available for your use!

You can download handouts for lactation professionals here. These cover topics like:

All Purpose Nipple Ointment
Breast Massage & Compression
Estimating Milk Supply
Sample Job Description
Teaching Breastfeeding

You can download handouts for parents here. These cover a wide range of categories:

Pregnancy
Lactation
Infant Care

There are also several handouts available in Spanish and Chinese

 

 

Free Webinar: “Becoming a Lactation Consultant”

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Are you wondering what it takes to become a Lactation Consultant or have questions about the IBCLC exam?

Breastfeeding Outlook is offering a series of FREE 1 hour live webinars that will cover what it takes to qualify for the IBCLC exam. The webinar will also discuss how to maximize your earning potential and how to improve your credibility. Marie Biancuzzo, RN, MS, IBCLC will be answering questions live.

Dates & Times

Space is limited for each webinar. All it takes is registering online. Easy peasy. Instructions are emailed to you a few days before the webinar. Take advantage of this free opportunity to get all of your IBCLC-related questions answered.

Business Case for Breastfeeding: Free Lactation Support Toolkit

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Do you have breastfeeding mothers asking you how to they should approach their employer about pumping and even wondering if they can continue to breastfeed once they go back to work?

Do you have employers contacting you, asking how they can how they can better support their breastfeeding employees, how to assess their current lactation program or even wondering what lactation policies to put into place?

Whatever the case, check out the Business Case for Breastfeeding, a free lactation support toolkit put out by the U.S Health and Human Services. It gives not only provides awesome, helpful tools (in the form of handouts and brochures) for families to make the case for breastfeeding to their employer, but it gives resources for employers as well. All are free to to download, print and distribute.

This lactation support toolkit also has a section of resources specifically geared towards lactation and health professionals in order to support outreach with businesses – including marketing guides and presentations.

 

 

Free Health Training from Tulane Knowledge to Practice Program

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Tulane Knowledge to Practice Program – Provides 4 training online tutorials geared towards both individuals and groups. Each tutorial includes videos, quizzes, activities and references). You can access tutorials here. A certificate of completion is given if you complete all 4 tutorials online.

1) Health Communication
2) Data-Driven and Evidence-Based Program Development
3) Valuing Diversity
4) Building and Sustaining Community Partnerships

See here for more training resources compiled by the KTP program.