IBCLC Detailed Content Outline: Clinical Skills Focused CERPs - Section VII

Participants will be invited to holistically consider the postpartum needs of birth parents. Through an invitation to walk through the various aspects of their human journey - from the spiritual and cultural, to the emotional, the cognitive and the physical- participants will be invited to think critically and holistically about the human needs of those on their journey towards giving birth and after giving birth. Emily will use these directions to invite participants to support professionals in asking their patients and clients: what they want out of their pregnancy/postpartum journey? Who and what is within their constellation of support, and how? How do we support our parents in accessing their own agency to ask for support in the event that they experience the symptoms of postpartum mood and anxiety disorders?

The meaning of mahram in Islam is a person with whom marriage is not permissible (haram) and the adopted baby will be able to achieve this mahram status by breastfeeding on her/his adopted mother for at least 5 times (satisfied feeding) before 2 years old according to the Muslim calendar. Subsequently, the baby status is similar to biological child of the adopted parents. Effective consultation is required to ensure the successful process of induced lactation for the aforementioned purpose. During consultation, breastfeeding benefits are crucial information to be explained to the adopted parents, however achieving mahram status is an additional motivational factor. According to research done by Che Abdul Rahim,N. et.al (2020) there were 6 factors that impacted successful induction of lactation: 1) appropriate protocol, 2) support system, 3) knowledge on breastfeeding technique & use of equipment, 4) time management, 5) mother's nutrition, 6) perseverance & strong motivation through follow up & additional information about expected challenges to overcome.

This presentation provides details on how to successfully induce lactation and how this knowledge can be used to support all families, including Muslim families who are breastfeeding to achieve mahram.

In 2020, only 25.6% of dyads in the US were exclusively breastfeeding at six months. One contributing factor to low exclusivity rates is the absence of a specialized physician who provides dyad care. Consequently, pediatricians and obstetricians provide lactation education and support in the primary care setting. Little is published about perceptions of and roles related to lactation practices in primary care settings, and no survey instrument exists to investigate these topics. A 58-question survey was developed, validated, and subsequently distributed to primary care providers (PCPs) in the field of maternal and child health to help define current perceptions and practices related to lactation care and referrals. In this pilot study, responses were received from 40 PCPs in the Southeastern United States and included in the analysis. Results highlight areas of strengths and areas for improvement in current practices of PCPs with regards to lactation services. These data can be utilized as a framework for developing interventions and/or programs that will improve lactation care in primary care settings.

Lactation professionals can provide invaluable assistance to Muslim families seeking to successfully breastfeed. However, cultural differences and a lack of understanding of Islamic culture could create barriers between professionals and the families they are trying to support. It is crucial that professionals and health care providers are aware of and acknowledge the unique role that culture and religion can play in this dynamic, both to prevent obstacles to breastfeeding and to encourage breastfeeding through culturally specific methods and arguments.

This presentation will show how to adapt your approach, language and content to ensure effective and sensitive care that will be more readily accepted by the mother and her family. It explores what the Qur’an says about breastfeeding and delves into traditional and cultural Islamic attitudes and practices surrounding breastfeeding. Moreover, it will explore the father’s role in Muslim culture and offer religious justification to encourage him to support breastfeeding, as well as issues of wet-nursing, milk sharing and adoption (as it relates to breastfeeding) within the Islamic context. As a participant, you will be encouraged to challenge your own assumptions about Islamic traditional and cultural practices and to use new knowledge gained to empower others to reflect on the benefits of being a culturally sensitive and responsive lactation professional and health care provider.

Every day, around the world, many mothers are faced with the complex task of managing the initial onset, or continuation, of their lactation following a late miscarriage, stillbirth, neonatal or infant loss. This presentation explores findings from a multi-year, multi-site Australian study conducted with bereaved families and health professionals that confirmed the limited nature and scope of lactation care currently available to bereaved families.

This presentation will provide evidence of the need and benefit of approaching lactation after infant death using a biopsychosocial care framework, so that bereaved families are able to make informed decisions from the full array of lactation management options that may be available including: suppression, sustained expression, breastmilk donation or using milk as memento. The challenges involved in providing bereaved lactation care will be acknowledged and discussed. Health professionals will be advised on what information and support bereaved families need and want, how and when this information may be best provided and who may be best placed to offer lactation care to bereaved families.

Due to the global shortage of mental health professionals, many primary care providers have become the first-line responders to a wide variety of psychiatric concerns. While lactation consultants and breastfeeding support counselors are not called upon to diagnose and treat mental health disorders, they nonetheless often become enmeshed in the topic due to the holistic nature of breastfeeding management. An understanding of the major psychiatric topics that can arise during lactation consultation is therefore a valuable asset.

In this presentation, we will describe mental health benefits and drawbacks of breastfeeding, and explore the controversy surrounding the “breast is best” campaign as it regards maternal mental health. We will also briefly explore the pharmacological and non-pharmacological options in treatment of major psychiatric disorders (e.g. generalized anxiety, major depressive disorder, bipolar mood disorder, schizophrenia) as they relate to lactation. Finally, we will review the scientific literature related to potential long-term mental health effects of breastfeeding on babies.

Perinatal professionals in hospitals have great influence over how much human milk a baby receives, as well as how encouraged parents feel related to pumping and initiating and maintaining their milk production and eventually meeting their infant feeding goals. When hospital staff help with pumping in the early hours, days, and weeks of a new and fragile baby’s life—especially when at breast, chest or body feeding isn’t possible—getting that professional support is likely to make a difference in the long-term health of that child as well as the health of their parent. Healthcare providers can facilitate milk collection and provision of it to babies and support parents with specific and updated guidance on pump choices, pump usage, flange fit and milk storage. Those who work in hospitals with families can make an important positive impact on long-term breastfeeding and human-milk feeding rates. This session will cover 12 simple ways (including the what, why, how, when and where of pumping) that healthcare providers can support parents who pump for their hospitalized baby.

Pumping can be a choice or a necessity and the role of Lactation Professionals is to meet the parents where they are at. There are endless reasons for parents to use a breast pump, including prematurity, maternal-infant separation, low milk supply, return to work. Pumping can also be a choice for parents that do not wish to directly latch their baby, called Exclusive Pumping. Pumping parents deserve the same kind of evidence-based care as their exclusively breastfeeding counterparts but are often marginalized. During this workshop, you will learn how to best support a pumping parent: the importance of proper flange sizing, pumping schedules, exclusive pumping, the emotional toll of triple feeding, and how to help parents set realistic goals based on their own values.

Raynauds is an illusive condition that tends to be confused with other conditions, misdiagnosed, and consequently rarely treated--causing the breastfeeding dyad to suffer. This program provides a review of the symptoms, medical and lactation resources, and clinical applications that facilitate most the effective treatment/comfort for the patient.

Breastfeeding rates are exceptionally low in Lebanon. Only 40% of mothers exclusively breastfed through the first month and 2.4% continued to exclusively breastfeed between 4 and 5 months. In 2012, I developed, implemented and evaluated a pilot Breastfeeding Peer Counselor (BPC) Training Program in Beirut, Lebanon. I chose this format since BPCs are adaptable to local contexts and studies have shown that that improve rates of breastfeeding initiation, duration, and exclusivity in a variety of settings and across diverse populations.

The program successfully trained 8 BPCs and led directly to the establishment of the largest mother-to-mother peer breastfeeding online support network in the Middle East (over 11,000 members to date). This presentation will provide participants with the knowledge to develop, adapt, and implement their own BPC Training programs suited to their local context. In addition, this presentation will reflect upon ethical considerations of such programs and will offer guidance on the process of program evaluation. This will allow participants to identify their own program’s strengths and weaknesses, which can improve the effectiveness of subsequent organizations.