Hi Lactnetters,
I'm currently working towards taking the IBCLC test... Completing practice hours, finishing a BA and learning an enormous amount of information... But not to pass a test. I am truly studying to be the best Lactation Consultant I can be. However, it really bothers me that some not so qualified people can just sit on the board exam pass and get the initials IBCLC next to their title... See because I know that anyone is capable of memorizing a lot of information for one test and then forget it all! Doctors, Register Dietitians, Nurses, Psychologists other health professionals have to undergo internships to improve their practical skills and can't become accredited until completing such internships. Here is where I think the IBCLC credentials may have a weakness. How can you know this professional actually has practice hours? The 2,500 hours of Breastfeeding counseling? Hey I know someone who works for a certain WIC agency who received the hours and took the exam and passed yet she knows very little about helping a breastfeeding mom (she even admitted that after the test she forgot everything she had memorized). So my point is that all of us who work really hard and really want to make a difference must also compete with these IBCLC's who have slipped through the cracks for positions? I am tired of fighting the formula companies, the misinformed doctors and hospital nurses, I am tired of competing with grandmas who feel the bottle is just as good... Why do I also have to compete with people who are supposed to be my Peers in this profession? To all of you who are tired of not finding positions in hospitals because you are not an RN, to those of you who can't find work at WIC or any Government Program that says is pro-Breastfeeding but hire no qualified IBCLC's as part of staff, and to those like me who work hard to help moms, now you know that is not just passing the exam that counts.
 
Sorry to vent this way but I'm sure there are others who feel the same!
Angela Salas LLLL

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