Recommended Lactation Consultant/Educator class?

Specialties Ob/Gyn

Published

Hi,

I am an RN and interested in getting a Lactation Consultant or Educator cert. I am looking at several online "classes" and am curious if anyone has any experience with them or recommendations. Personally, I am pretty pro-breastfeeding and have BF all 3 of my kids for about 2 years each (baby just turned 1). I recognize however, what works for me is not for every woman and want to steer clear of classes heavy on ideology.

I'll be going back to work this fall, hopefully OB or post partum, and would like to eventually sit for the ILBLC exam at some point down the road.

Thanks!

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Specializes in ED, Tele, L&D.

I completed the Lactation Educator course through UCSD online. Pretty easy course, yet packed full of very useful, applicable information. After completing the LE course, I was in UCSD's lactation consultant course, but I had to drop out due to lack of time and other commitments. I'm hoping to start again in the fall. Lactation Educator is a great place to start as it will most likely be a prerequisite for any Lactation Consultant program - I know it is for UCSD's LC program.

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I also took the UCSD online CLEC course. I was a little leery of taking it online, but it turned out to be a good experience. I also have 3 kids and breastfed them all, but like you I am also quite aware that what works for me does not necessarily work for others. The instructor of the course, Gini Baker is great and while she is obviously pro-breastfeeding, at one point she said "this isn't do or die breastfeeding" and I thought that summed it up pretty well.

FYI the course takes up a fair amount of time. I found myself spending a lot of hours at my computer after the kids were in bed. Overall, I think it is a great course and I learned a lot so I would highly recommend it.

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Thanks for the advice. I'm so excited that UCSD's program is online now. I think I may just have to sign up for the class starting in July. Having kids in school totally sucks. When I switched careers and went back for my BSN I had the older two and suprise pregnancy popped up during my third semester of clinicals. So I got my BSN in December '09, RN in February of '10 and had baby in March. Since then we've moved from Las Vegas to rural northern Minnesota and are getting ready to move to Louisville, KY next month (because winter was that insane). Husband promises to love his new job and come this fall I will hopeully start working. OB or post partum is where I want to be so I'm getting my NRP, ACLS and EFM certs this summer. Then a few years of L&D and onward to my CNM, which was the whole point of this career change. This, of course, is banking on the fact that my sanity holds out. :D

Thanks again!

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Specializes in ED, Tele, L&D.

The single most useful tip Gini taught me was to never work harder than my patients :)

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Specializes in lactation.

Another one that took UCSD course and would highly suggest it as well. It wasn't difficult but did take a fair amount of time. I did go on to sit for the IBCLC exam which the course was good prep for.

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Specializes in L&D.

I may go to a conference through Prepared Childbirth Educators to become a Breastfeeding Counselor. It looks like an interesting course and I can use CEU days through my hospital.

I did their Childbirth Educator course last year and liked it (I now have a part-time job as a childbirth educator).

One thing I like about their courses is that they're just for nurses.

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Specializes in L&D/Maternity nursing.

I took the CLC course. http://www.healthychildren.cc/

they hold week long trainings all over the country.

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Specializes in OB, Med-Surg.

What is the cost for this class?

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Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.
What is the cost for this class?

According to the information provided when you click on the link, it's $675 if you register early, and $725 otherwise.

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So I'm guessing you'd have to have a bachelors in nursing to qualify for this position? Please give feedback....

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Specializes in lactation.

I have an ADN and am an IBCLC. I do not work in a hospital though but run a breastfeeding program through WIC

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