Hi Karyn,
As to your question of the menu of lactation credentials, here is some input.

I did the CLE with CAPPA. I cannot take the IBCLC exam because pathway F has been trashed for now anyway ( and I am independent and in a super rural island community with no one to help me with the process but that is another story.....) I don't want to be a LLLL and my community has no WIC BF program, or I would have happily started out there.

Since I teach/have taught breastfeeding classes for AHEC and other state groups, I did need to prove some compentency. see http://cappa.net/lactation.asp for the process of lactation educator.  Healthy Children holds a CLC course, and you can read more about their process here www.healthychildren.cc  I also was a student of the Healthy Children staff through Union Institute and University and took formal courses both distance and in person. I graduated from UIU and am now working on my MPH locally.

As for if there is other confusion in the ranks in other fields, of course there is. Right on up the ladder from RN's, LPN, CNA to MD, DO and PA. , DMD, DDS..... Often the professional knows their scope and differences although yes, the public can not totally understand the difference.

A better example ( since all of those I listed are licensed) might be health education. I certified many years ago as a childbirth educator. Now there are more groups offering certification than I can list.
As a MPH student I had to choose a specialization  and I chose Health Promotion/ Disease Prevention.(fits so nicely with breastfeeding) 

Part of my coursework and graduation requirements are to take the CHES exam ( and pass). that is Certified Health Education Specialist. I am thinking when I get my CHES I will drop my CCE, because childbirth education is certainly health education too right?  But few consumers will know the differences. And most health educators that teach for state groups as I do have a CHES, yet I am doing fine with a CCE and CLE because it demonstrates SOME sort of compentency and check/balance within my area of knowledge.

Hope this help ( not that it unconfused you) to demonstrate that even if professions are licensed ( or not)  there is still plenty of room for "new" disciplines and letters....Those of us without an IBCLC credential are well aware of the pecking order but wish to have some formal demonstration of our skills and knowledge too.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mirine R. Dye,  insert alphabet soup here....
Mothers in Paradise, Childbirth and Lactation Education Service
MPH grad student Florida International University , Miami
living in the isolated Florida Keys  

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