everything has a price. i spent almost $10,000 of my own money (my own credit
cards, to tell the truth) to be able to sit the exam. quite a gamble, some
might say. i haven't made near that much this year, either. but it was worth
it to me because it was what i wanted to do. and when i went to the ilca
conference, it dawned on me that almost everyone that was there was on their
employer's dime. there have been various costs to my family, one of which is
no family vacation for the last two years; i spent the money going to florida
without them.
so no complaining about not having the money.
and if you do not work in a job where you get enough experience to sit the
exam, your motivation to do this work should involve getting the job that
provides the experience, or the volunteer job. yes, even volunteer work.
apparently LLLL pass the exam more successfully or with higher scores than
other candidates. what does that tell you about the value of that volunteer
experience?
i have posted before about this, and i firmly feel that if there an
institution or person passes someone off as a "lactation consultant" and that
person is not a board certified LC, then there is an element of fraud
involved in having the non-certified person provide care (unless they are
clearly identified as a volunteer, such as LLLL, for example). just because
consumers do not yet know the difference does not mean it is okay to fool
them. i give all my patients a handout which tells about me and my practice
and the very first thing i mention is what IBCLC means.
when i spend an hour with a woman and she turns to me and says " what
qualifications do you have to have to do this, do you have to study or
something?" that doesn't mean that she doesn't value my profession, it just
means that she doesn't know. and that she is desperate enough to seek my help
without knowing whether i have qualifications or not.
and the problem of knowing that other IBCLCs give out crummy advice is one
that bothers me a great deal, but i haven't got a solution for it yet. we
just have to continue to upgrade the quality of what we provide, and increase
what we all know.
and no, being a nurse is not necessary. i can learn everything i need to
know. so can someone else. and the difference between being board certified
and non board certified is clear. there aren't any "almost doctors" that have
different initials but can practice medicine.
and whenever i heard the term "lactation nurse" i just want to scream. does
that mean wet nurse? will she come around and lactate for you? unfortunately
what it usually means is that the hospital won't hire a "real" LC and has a
nurse designated to do the job, whose training is unclear.
it doesn't mean that persons who are IBCLC are denigrating non-IBCLC. you are
just still in the process, so to speak. and barbara is entirely right when
she points out that this is not a personal issue. this is a professional
issue. if i want to be a doctor, but don't want to spend the time it takes to
go to medical school, am i allowed to moan about not getting to be a doctor?
i think not.
carol brussel IBCLC
still not a nurse in denver, CO, expecting winter to return - but for just a
minute or two
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