To all who responded to my CHES post...I'm posting this because of the high level of interest and because I believe it is relevant to the credentialling discussion... CHES is granted by the NCHEC (National Commission on Health Education Credentialling 944 Marcon Blvd. St310, Alentown PA 18103 or call 1-888-624-3248). It began in the mid 1980s (around the same time as the IBCLC credential), when I was in my Behavioral Sciences and Health Education MPH program at UCLA. At that point, the faculty at UCLA considered it to be an elitist move to try to lock out professionals with long time experience, but no advanced degrees, from the field. Unfortunately, I bought into this fully, and didn't get grandmothered into the credential--I later had to sit for the exam (a similar style board exam to the IBCLC). After completing my PhD in Health Services Research and Policy Analysis also from UCLA, I took a tenure track position at OSU (which wanted faculty to have the CHES because one member was on the NCHEC board). So, I sat for the exam and passed. I've since quit that job, but I'm glad I have the credential and will not it lapse because it does carry weight in public health and in educational fields. It appears to be relatively unheard of in lactation circles though; time will tell. It is a similar set of requirements in terms of requiring BOTH education and experience in the field (a relatively huge number if I recall). There is a stagered education vs experience provision to not penalize those who have "worked their way up" but without Master's level or above degrees. The exam is MUCH broader than the IBCLC exam in that one needs to know about general theory and practice of public health education in the community, schools, one-on-one, mass media, etc. However, once certified, it would be easy for an IBCLC to maintain. They require 75 hours of continuing ed over a 5 year period--much of which can overlap with the IBCLC. In fact, I have an easier time meeting my IBCLC credits and having them count as CHES, than the other way around. This is because almost all IBCLC CERPS are health education related, but not all CHES CEs are lactation related. Does that make sense? That is not to say it is difficult to fulfill the 75--there are many opportunities by mail, at conferences, etc. At the annual Am Public Health Association conference alone, I rack up 25-30 hours of CHES, but many folks do it solely by mail. I do not sit on their board, so I'm not trying to plug this for that reason. I do think there is a valid overlap and practice enrichement with both credentials. I am seeing more and more IBCLCs with MPH or MN degrees and I think these folks could very easily turn around and become CHES certified. Those with years of experience might look into it because of their experience trade-off provision (not very common in certification programs). I hope this helps and is clear. Chris Hafner-Eaton, PhD, MPH, CHES, IBCLC [log in to unmask] mom, wife, educator, lactation consultant, researcher, scientist, author, organic gardener, photographer, lapidary creator, lousy cleaner. ---------- >From: [log in to unmask] >To: [log in to unmask] >Subject: CHES credential >Date: Fri, May 26, 2000, 5:36 AM > > Hi Chris-- > > I always enjoy your posts on LactNet!! > > What is a Certified Health Education Specialist?? Is it a masters credential > or a certificate? What schools/programs provide this type of credential. > > My friend and I are both RN/BSNs who became certified first as childbirth > educators then as IBCLCs. We both went on for MS, mine in Nursing and hers in > Education. Both of us want to **TEACH**!! (whether patients, or nursing/med > students) I also hold a Post Master's Certificate in Nursing Ed. > > If you have time, I would be very interested in info on the CHES credential. > > Thanks, > > Kathy in NJ IBCLC RN C (Maternal-infant), APN C (Family Nurse Practitioner) > PhD student hoping to study labor and lactation issues > *********************************************** The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html