Most health professionals feel poorly trained in medical issues related to lactation - in one questionnaire 52% of paediatricians felt that their training was inadequate. 93% of UK medical students would like more lactation education than they receive. The UK World Breastfeeding Trends Initiative Report in 2016 identified insufficient training for health professionals as one of seven key gaps. Apart from seeking to improve local and national training (join our Facebook group to discuss this further), here are some resources to pursue.
E-learning modules:
Healthy Child Programme breastfeeding (or search for breastfeeding on e-learning for health, e-lfh)
Healthy Child Programme formula feeding (or search for formula feeding on e-lfh)
NIFN (National Infant Feeding Network) infant feeding module (also available through ESR, the electronic staff record)
Unicef UK Baby Friendly Initiative e-learning for GPs and Paediatricians. Require subscription (individual or institutional)
A teaching slide deck for pharmacists and counter staff from Wendy Jones
OpenPediatrics hosts a free set of e-learning modules deigned to cover the 3 hours of training needed to work in an UNICEF Baby Friendly Initiative accredited setting - you need to register first and then search for "breastfeeding" to find the 15 modules (called Bella Breastfeeding Provider Training). At completion there is a certificate
Distance learning courses
The Association of Breastfeeding Mothers run high quality distance learning courses for mothers and health professionals - the Foundation Module and Advanced Course.
Lactation Consultant
Health Professionals who support breastfeeding/chestfeeding families as a significant part of their working practice, or who have qualified as breastfeeding counsellors with lay organisations, or La Leche League leaders in a voluntary capacity, may consider becoming an Internationally Board Certified Lactation Consultant. This involves 90 hours of lactation specific education, 1000 supervised clinical hours and a rigorous examination. Re-accreditation happens every 5 years. See the Lactation Consultant GB website for more advice.
Other Educational Resources
American Academy of Pediatrics Breastfeeding Curriculum - including prepared Powerpoint talks and evaluation tools
