Hi all,

Sorry, I'm late posting a response to this discussion. Our hospital is accredited by JHACO and we've been collecting data for the core measure since January.

The recent question on Lactnet was, how does JHACO define a Lactation Consultant? Does it need to be an IBCLC? We are unclear as to the answer, also. However, we recently had another question about documentation and emailed JHACO and they were very helpful and responded quickly. Here is the website with information about contacting them with questions:

http://www.jointcommission.org/standards_information/online_question_form.aspx



In my reading of the documents, I have not found anywhere in which they clarify if an LC needs to be IBCLC or CLC, or have any accreditation at all. It seems to be again the continuing problem of what constitutes a Lactation Consultant? We can't call ourselves an MD or RN if we are not, but anyone can technically call themselves a LC whether or not they have any training or accreditation. It seems increasingly clear that we need some type of legislation to legally protect our profession. I'm also very curious to know if JHACO has clarified this point, if you find the answer could you please post and let us know. Otherwise, it would seem to be a loophole in which a hospital could simply meet the measure by calling all of their RN's - lactation consultants and have them document the mother's feeding preference. 

Sincerely,

Tricia Shamblin, RN, IBCLC

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