Saint Clare's Receives Lactation Award
Katena Center for Mother and Child at Saint Clare’s Hospital in Denville
Recognized
DENVILLE, NJ – February 13, 2014 – The International Board of Lactation Consultant Examiners® (IBLCE®)
and International Lactation Consultant Association® (ILCA®) have
recognized The Katena Center for Mother and Child at Saint Clare’s
Hospital in Denville for excellence in lactation care.
The The Katena Center for Mother and Child at Saint Clare’s Hospital
in Denville has received the IBCLC Care Award in recognition for staffing
professionals who hold the prestigious International Board Certified Lactation
Consultant® certification (IBCLC®) and providing a lactation program
that is available 5-7 days a week for breastfeeding families. In addition,
the facility demonstrated that is has provided recent breastfeeding training
for medical staff that care for new families, and have recently completed
activities that help protect, promote, and support breastfeeding.
According to Liz Brooks, President of ILCA, “This recognition highlights
the efforts being made by maternity facilities all across the world to
help mothers get off to a good start with breastfeeding, and to support
them in reaching their goals. IBCLC is the leading internationally recognized
lactation certification in the world, and IBCLC certificants are highly
skilled in helping mothers with the questions and concerns that can arise.
They are also an important part of the overall maternal and child health
team by assuring that evidence-based policies and practices are in place
that help mothers succeed with breastfeeding.”
Rachelle Lessen, Chair of IBLCE, echoes those sentiments. “Facilities
that receive the IBCLC Care Award are to be commended for improving maternal
and child health by making breastfeeding a priority and for taking steps
to improve breastfeeding support. An important part of providing excellent
breastfeeding care is having expert assistance available when the breastfeeding
couplet needs it. IBCLC professionals are the health care professionals
best suited to provide this clinical help and often make the difference
between success and failure for women achieving their breastfeeding goals.”
IBLCE certificants focus on preventive care, so they are available during
pregnancy to assess the mother and provide information on how to successfully
initiate breastfeeding. They continue that assistance after the baby is
born by helping mothers overcome breastfeeding challenges, providing accurate
information, and continuing to support them as their baby grows. They
assist mothers returning to work or school, help mothers in more unusual
situations such as breastfeeding more than one baby or nursing a sick
or premature infant, and help train nursing staff to manage basic breastfeeding care.
As allied health care professionals with the leading internationally recognized
certification for professional lactation services, IBCLC professionals
work in hospitals and birthing centers, clinics, public health agencies,
private practice, community settings, government agencies, and in research.
There are currently more than 26,500 such professionals in 96 countries
worldwide that are certified by the International Board of Lactation Consultant
Examiners® (www.iblce.org), a program independently accredited by
the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA). NCCA accreditation
represents a mark of quality for certification programs.
Brooks says that “Breastfeeding rates are on the rise today and
with that dramatic increase, the need for trained professionals who can
help also increases. Breastfeeding is natural and often works quite well
without intervention. But there can be complications or risk factors and
mothers need extra support. An IBCLC is the trained expert with clinical
skill who works with the entire health care team so that a mother’s
breastfeeding goals can be met.”
In addition to finding IBCLC professionals at The Katena Center for Mother
and Child at Saint Clare’s Hospital in Denville, mothers can also
find an IBCLC near them by visiting the ILCA website at www.ilca.org.
Follow the “Find a Lactation Consultant” link and search for
an IBCLC by postal code, city and state, or country.
For more information about the IBCLC Care Award program, contact IBLCE at
award@iblce.org.