A Mom Like Me

One thing that sets becoming an IBCLC (International Board Certified Lactation Consultant) apart from other programs is the degree of independence that it requires. Where university degree programs specify which courses are required to graduate and provide you with opportunities to fulfill the requirements, the designation I am chasing simply lists what courses I need to take and how many clinical hours I need (500!)… finding appropriate courses and learning opportunities is entirely up to me.

Case in point: When I went to teacher’s college, I was assigned a “home group” with which I traveled to my various courses throughout the week, and when it came time for practicum, someone sitting in an office somewhere printed me off my assignment of which classroom I was to show up to practice teach in on what date. Of course, that degree (and other degree programs) do take dedication and hard work, but everything is laid out for you.

The IBLCE allows candidates a five year period within which to fulfill all requirements to write the exam. My plan is to write the exam in July 2015, which will mark the end of my five years.  All contact hours and courses must be completed by April of that year. This  gives me a little over three more years to fulfill all of my obligations.

I decided to take stock of exactly where I am, to better understand where I am going and what I need to do to get there.

The verdict: I need to kick it up a notch. I’ve still got lots of time, but I’d rather meet the requirements slowly but surely than to be panicking when only a few months remain.

University level academic requirements achieved:

• Biology
• Infant and Child Growth and Development
• Psychology
• Research
• Sociology

Still to achieve:

• Anatomy
• Physiology
• Nutrition

Lactation specific education: Two courses down (Nine to go!)

There are a further six mini courses I must complete: (These are the ones that sound extremely exciting to me. YAWN!)

Basic life support (e.g. CPR – I have this one), Medical documentation, Medical terminology, Occupational safety for health professionals, Professional ethics for health professionals, and Universal safety precautions and infection control.

Clinical hours required: 500

Clinical hours achieved: 25 (only 475 to go!)

My biggest challenge right now is meeting the 500 contact hours requirement. I am currently interning one afternoon a week which typically gives me 2.5-3 hours. (To count for hours I must be actively working with mother-baby dyads). I don’t have enough weeks left to record just 3 hours at a time. Looks like working one more half day a week is in my future!

I’m starting a new course tonight, “Positioning and Latch of Baby at the Breast” – off to study I go!

It’s official! I  finally received approval from the IBLCE to start collecting my clinical hours! Because I am not a health care provider, I had to (along with my mentor) develop my plan for how I am  going to learn all of the LC competencies AND accumulate 500 clinical hours.

Well, that plan has finally got official approval and I logged my first clinical hours this week. Three down, only 497 to go!

The list of competencies is lengthy but fascinating. It is amazing for me to look at that list, now 9 months into observation and course work, and realize how many of them I can cross off my list as knowing and understanding already. There is still much to learn but it is encouraging to realize just how far I’ve come. I look forward to all the experiences awaiting me. I am especially fascinated with the idea of working with infants under 2 hours of age… now I just have to find a couple mommies who’d like to have an LC in training attend their births!

I am happy to report that the changes that the IBLCE has made to their program will have a minimal effect on me. The only change to my plans is that I must take three additional university courses (anatomy, physiology and nutrition). Thankfully, because of my psychology degree, I have already taken the other 5 required university course. I will now take these three courses concurrently with the 11 breastfeeding specific courses I am already taking (or will take!), and the 500 practice hours required. No biggie. 🙂

Right now I am happily studying “Breastfeeding Foundations” and gearing up to begin accumulating my hours this summer, working directly with mamas and babes. Bye bye shadow!

Just when I thought I was really on my way…

The IBLCE has recently amended their requirements for those lactation consultant applicants who are not health care professionals. That would be me. The changes require prospective consultants to have eight university credits from the health field. It makes sense – because LCs are a part of the health care provider  team, it is important that we be trained and have similar knowledge.

I get that. It just makes my journey not so clear cut anymore.

Thankfully, because of my psychology degree, I do have *most* of the required courses. I already have psychology, sociology, biology, research methods and infant development under my belt. All that I am missing is anatomy, physiology and nutrition.

What this means for me is that I must now take those three university credits in addition to my lactation specific courses as well as my 500 hours of clinical practice.

If I can take them concurrently as I progress through my learning journey, it won’t be that big of a deal. However, it is not clear to me on the website whether or not I must have those credits before I continue. I’m awaiting a response to my inquiring email.

Gah.

I don’t even want to think about that. Fingers crossed.

Just a little update…. I am going to be spending the next two days at the Ottawa Valley Lactation Consultants annual conference! The event is titled, “Strategies to Help with Breastfeeding.” It sounds like a great way for me to start my formal education in my new field.

I’m excited to meet new people, and I know I will be exposed to more knowledge that I can hope to remember in such a short time frame. It will be fun to feel like I am really “one of them!”

I know I will be exhausted by the end of it. No parks and playgroups for me for the rest of the week – the conference runs 7:30 to 4:30 both days!

I am so excited about the email I just received! I am squealing with excitement! Ok, so the squealing is only in my head but I am squealing nonetheless!

I went ahead  and asked one of the local consultants I’ve been working with if she’d be interested in being my formal mentor. I’ve been really hoping she would say yes as we get along really well and seem to have similar ideas about breastfeeding.

I just received an email back… and she’s interested! She is going to call me so that we can chat more! YIPPEEEE!!!!

I am enjoying my time shadowing the talented and knowledgeable lactation consultants in Ottawa.  I am still visiting a couple of clinics regularly and tomorrow will work with a new consultant at another clinic. It is very valuable for me to work with many different consultants in a variety of settings. Though they all have a similar knowledge base, their personalities, and thus, the way they deal with mommies are all very different.

I love shadowing, but I am anxious to start learning a little more and start  getting a little more experience.

Based on the IBLCE‘s guidelines, I need to find a mentor who will help me to plan out how the next couple years of learning will go. This person will help me figure out how I will get my 500 hours of practical experience, course learning, and other learning experiences  before I write the final exam. All of the requirements must be met within five years prior to sitting the exam.

I am encouraged to continue to work with several consultants, but I do require one main mentor who will oversee my learning plan and oversee all of my work. Without a mentor, I really can’t move forward toward my goal.

I have someone in mind. I know she is busy as she works full time and has a family at home. We work well together (I’ve shadowed her for several weeks.) She always makes a point to include me when meeting with a mother and makes sure I understand what’s going on. Consequently I am learning heaps from her!

I am emailing her to see if she is at all interested in being my mentor. Fingers Crossed!

I have had several opportunities to work with various lactation consultants over the past month. What an interesting learning experience it’s been. I look forward to continuing to learn more and more about breastfeeding mothers and babies and the hurdles and joys that they face. It was wonderful to see the consultants in action. I look forward to the day where I can include myself among their ranks.

Among  the consultants I have been lucky enough to work with, I have seen such a variety of techniques and mannerisms. While they are all wonderful at what they do, I definitely relate to some styles more than others. Sometimes the interaction seems almost clinical to me, friendly but serious. Other consultants will sit down beside a mother and to an outsider you may think that they had been friends for years. This particular approach is very appealing to me. At a time when a mother is feeling stressed and exhausted and hormonal, I’m sure it is very reassuring to have that “girlfriend” type figure holding your hand as you struggle to learn what is so important to you.  Watching some of the women, it seems more like mother-to-mother support than a clinician-client relationship.

That is the kind of lactation consultant I hope to be one day! Now to get onto the next challenge of finding someone to mentor me…. 🙂