I started this profession nearly 25 years ago. I have a BA in psychology
and education. I started as a LLL, and led groups for many years when my
kids were small. I did the exam in 1987.
When my youngest daughter was 2, I started volunteering in the hospital
where I had had all my babies, and I was eventually hired and paid for my
work. My salary was ridiculous, but I had a paying job. I also volunteered
in the office of my kids' pediatrician to help moms who were breastfeeding.
For the last 10 years, I have been working in a maternity hospital for a
normal salary.
All those years as a LLL gave me experience with older babies, and working
voluntarily in the hospital and with the pediatrician gave me lots of
medical information.
What really makes me wonder is how hospital nurses, who have rarely seen a
baby over the age of a few days, get their certification and start doing
house calls with babies of all ages. How do they pass the exam if they have
not had experience with older babies? Without LLL background, their
counseling skills are minimal. I recently heard from a mom of a three month
old that her SIL, a newly certified nurse IBCLC, was really upset to see
that her baby fed for only a few minutes on each side. She was using a
check list from the hospital where she works and was sure that this lovely
fat baby was not "getting enough" milk.
I have set up a clinical program to give students the chance to do clinical
hours in the hospital. Most are not nurses. Now we have gotten permission to
do clinical hours in the Well Baby clinics here in Israel, with an
experienced IBCLC mentoring students. This gives nurses a chance to see
older babies and what the problems and solutions are.
Breastfeeding is NOT a medical issue, but has been medicalized over the
years. Maybe being a LLL should be one of the requirements for
certification. It is important to see normal breastfeeding, and not
pathology. I try to go to functions where there will be many breastfeeding
moms just to stay in touch with normal breastfeeding.
Esther Grunis, IBCLC
Lis Maternity Hospital
Tel Aviv, Israel
-----Original Message-----
From: fiona creina [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Friday, March 14, 2008 10:16 PM
Subject: Non Nurse IBCLCs
Hello
I just joined LACTNET, It's a fabulous resource!
For those of you who have become IBCLCs and weren't nurses first, how did
you go about accumulating the requisite hours of clinical experience before
sitting the exam?
Thanks for any suggestions.
Fiona Creina
BSc LLLL CPD CCCE
Niagara, ON
Canada
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