Course Description

BreastfeedLA’s Lactation Educator Specialist course prepares community health workers and others working to promote health and wellness for families to become lactation educators. This 45-hour LEAARC approved course covers basic breastfeeding management such as basic anatomy and physiology of lactation, positioning and latch, common breastfeeding challenges, counseling skills, early postpartum management, alternative feeding methods, creating a prenatal breastfeeding class, local and global public health considerations and more. Upon completion of the course, graduates may use the title “Certificated Lactation Educator Specialist” (CLES). This designation is valid for 5 years from the date the certificate is issued. Renewal is offered through completion of BreastfeedLA’s Lactation Education Specialist Refresher course offered annually.

What makes our course different?

It is the position of BreastfeedLA that breastfeeding must be addressed as not solely an individual choice, but an expression of culture. Therefore, our Lactation Education Specialist and Lactation Consultant Education courses, like all our programming, are committed to recognizing and celebrating diversity, inclusion, and equity; and grounded by the guiding principle of cultural awareness and relevancy. BreastfeedLA’s Lactation Education program is proudly taught by women of color Lactation Consultants within a framework of reproductive justice. Our curriculum is culturally responsive, intentionally inclusive, and tailored to the specific needs of our diverse communities. 

*BreastfeedLA’s entire Lactation Education Program is LEAARC approved. 

Course Objectives

• Contextualize breast/chestfeeding as inseparable from the structures and systems that underlie infant feeding disparities

• Identify common barriers to establishing lactation and strategies to overcome those barriers 

• Provide a thorough understanding of basic lactation management skills

• Explore causes and solutions for common lactation problems

• Establish basic understanding of newborn behavior and development and how it relates to infant feeding

• Develop the necessary skills to educate pregnant and lactating persons about breast/chestfeeding in both group and individual settings, including teaching a prenatal breastfeeding class

• Develop the necessary counseling skills to provide sensitive and culturally appropriate care to lactating parents and family

• Course topics include basic anatomy and physiology of lactation, early attachment of the baby, hospital care, support during the postpartum stage, common concerns and solutions, and assistive devices used in breast/chestfeeding 

*All concepts, skills, and education in human lactation are taught in accordance with the IBLCE Detailed Content Outline and meet the standards for supporting breastfeeding practices advised by the World Health Organization, American Academy of Pediatrics, and Baby-Friendly USA.

*BreastfeedLA is an approved provider by the California Board of Registered Nursing. This course offers 54 contact hours of continuing education. BreastfeedLA’s provider number is CEP 16435. Licensee must maintain certificate for a period of four years.