Dear all:

I feel that the discussion has gone the way of a discussion I had many years ago when someone said that the problem of HIV was so severe that we should stop donating money to breast cancer. Huh?

One can work on both issues at the same time.  We might prioritize how much time we spend on the issue and sometimes the issues go hand in hand.  

The most egregious misrepresentations are from the formula industry who has perpetrated their "feeding specialists" and paid Google so their "feeding specialists" are the first ones parents find for breastfeeding.  At the same time, there is no other credential that I have seen among breastfeeding helpers where more people MISREPRESENT their qualifications than the CLC and I have one documented case where one of the instructors told an attendee in the course that it the only difference was that one was international and the other was not.  As I stated previously, the person was very angry because she paid good money for the course and didn't like the fact that the differences were pushed under the carpet in this way.

So, in an attempt to counter THE PROBLEM which is false representation of credentials -- and of course the biggest problem being the formula industry's misleading use of "feeding specialists", the New York Lactation Consultant Association website explains that some infant formula companies claim they have lactation consultants, that the term is not trade marked and that OUR website only allows breastfeeding helpers who are FREE FROM CONFLICTS OF INTEREST.  

On the lesser problem of some INDIVIDUALS perpetrating misleading information about their credentials, we simply give a warning and then if the person continues they will be removed from our website.   I have sent letters to CLCs when others have alleged that they were misrepresenting their credentials.  I did not have to undergo a full investigation of the truth of the allegations because in every case the person was apologetic or seemed concerned that the client was under the impression that they were a CONSULTANT rather than a COUNSELOR. I've also called a pediatric practice that sent someone to take the CLC course and then advertised that she was a lactation CONSULTANT.  They immediately understood the difference in training.  

The woman who blogged about the two credentials being the same would never be allowed to put her services on the New York Lactation Consultant Association because she put up misleading information about credentials. Her website is DESTRUCTIVE rather than CONSTRUCTIVE.  She very easily put up information about what each training entails instead of ranting about IBCLCs.  

Also, for parents, we provide a full list of all sorts of credentials.  Every time I turn around someone new joins our organization with a bunch of letters, if it is at all related to health, education, or breastfeeding, it is included in our list.  IBCLCs are separated from "other breastfeeding helpers".  "Other breastfeeding helpers" are allowed to list prenatal classes and groups on our website.  IBCLCs are ALSO allowed to list "home" and "office visits".

I do NOT see that dealing with this problem needs to be anything other than an exercise in how to educate the public appropriately about potential misrepresentation by corporations AND individuals. Granted, our website is a tiny drop in the bucket.  

Best regards, 

Susan E. Burger, MHS, PhD, IBCLC

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