The original post that started this thread was, I think, looking to create
another certificate course. We already have many of these courses that do a
wonderful job of providing basic education regarding breastfeeding. In the
discussion following the original posts, it is not the years of experience
we are talking about relative to these courses, but the prerequisites and
actual course itself. A person taking a 20 hour course or a 45 hour course
generally needs no other prerequisite to obtain letters after their name
except to sit in the classroom for the requisite period of time. This
person may never have graduated from high school, may never have taken a
college level health science course, or ever seen or worked with a
breastfeeding woman. They do not need any experience to take the course.
Years of experience are not the issue here, it is the course itself and
what the course prepares the person to be able to do. These are two
separate issues. A nurse's aid needs 130 hours of preparation, a licensed
practical nurse needs about 18 months of education, while a registered
nurse needs up to 4 years of preparation. Some of their duties overlap but
each has a different scope of practice based on the level of preparation
undertaken. So too are the differences among the various breastfeeding
courses and the prerequisites for the IBCLC credential.

I think there is a crying necessity for all of the education that can be
provided to help breastfeeding mothers. Blending the various levels of care
into a coordinated approach to ensuring that all breastfeeding mothers have
access to the level of care that they need is a worthy goal.

Marsha Walker, RN, IBCLC
Weston, MA

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