Breastfeeding difficulties – help is at hand

In our well-baby clinic we hear the stories of bad breastfeeding advise offered to mothers on a daily basis. Very often this advise lead to the mother stopping breastfeeding. Unfortunately, by the time the story is told it is often too late. Sadly, this advise is commonly offered by healthcare professionals.

New mothers assume that their doctors, the labour ward nursing staff and their well-baby  clinic sisters are qualified to offer breastfeeding support. They put their trust in the opinions of these professionals.

And most healthcare professionals do receive some training in breastfeeding during their initial pre-graduate studies. For doctors this training is very basic, consisting of only a few lectures. Nursing sisters and dieticians will get more information as they work with breastfeeding mothers more directly. Those who end up choosing a career path like paediatrics or midwifery will learn more about breastfeeding at conferences and in-service trainings. They will also build experience as they carry on, plus may or may not choose to breastfeed their own babies. They may be able to assist mothers with basic problems.

But the truth is that most of these professionals are not equipped to deal with more complicated breastfeeding difficulties. Many women who stop breastfeeding in the early weeks would have been able to continue if they only received the right information and ongoing support.

This is where a lactation consultant comes in.

Who is (and isn’t) a lactation consultant?

A lactation consultant is a professional that specialises in breastfeeding. In South Africa you will encounter two types of certified lactation consultants.

• An IBCLC, or International Board Certified Lactation Consultant who completed studies regulated by an international board across all countries. An IBCLC is not necessarily a healthcare professional, and not all of them are able to provide medical aid invoices.
• A SACLC (South African Certified Lactation Consultant)who completed a postgraduate course that was developed specifically for healthcare professionals like Registered Nurses, dieticians, medical doctors and speech therapists working in South Africa. As you need to be a healthcare professional to do this course, all SACLC’s have BHF practice numbers and should be able to assist with medical aid claiming.

A lactation consultant will spend a minimum of 1,5-2 hours with a mom (often more) and will provide follow-up care and support.

You should know that there are people providing breastfeeding support without being a certified lactation consultant. This includes healthcare professionals like nursing sisters and dieticians, who are allowed to do so according to their scopes of practice. But if they are not certified they will not be able to fully assist a mom. There are also many lay people who completed short courses and practice as breastfeeding councillors. Although they may support some mothers they will not be able to give proper medical assistance.

Who will benefit from seeing a lactation consultant?

• Mothers who struggled with breastfeeding with a previous child
• Mothers who have concerns in pregnancy already, for example a mom with inverted nipples, previous breast surgery, or a baby diagnosed with medical conditions like a cleft lip and palate.
• A mother with a baby refusing to latch beyond the first day or two.
• Mothers who experience nipple pain during feeding
• Mothers with breast engorgement, especially if it lasts longer than 2 days, or if it is so severe that your baby cannot latch, or if your breasts doesn’t feel emptier after a feed.
• Mothes experiencing signs of mastitis (flu symptoms, fever, red area on the breast, breast feeling warm)
• Mothers who are concerned over their milk supply, or whose babies are not gaining weight well.
• Babies who are generally sleepy and feeding for only short periods.
• Babies who seem to never get full and are always unhappy.
• Anything else that doesn’t feel right, or that you are not sure off

Get help sooner rather than later

If breastfeeding difficulties are not addressed and resolved it will escalate and cause bigger problems later on. The sooner you get help, the better.

What does it cost?

A visit with a lactation consultant will be a lot cheaper than formula feeding a baby for the next 1-2 years.

Most medical aids will pay in the region of R500 for a lactation visit. A lactation consultant may charge a bit more than this, due to the length of the visit and the level of after-care. Considering the amount of time they spend with moms, and comparing this to the what you pay for any other healthcare visit, seeing a lactation consultant is actually not expensive.

Please still make contact with us, even if you cannot afford a full consultation. We will always aim to find a way to help a mom, and we have various avenues that mothers can take to get support.

Lactation support at Parentwood

At Parentwood we have two qualified SACLC’s, and one nursing sister who is a student on the course. We offer various breastfeeding support services, including:

• Lactation consultations (cash and medical aid)
• Breast Pump Demo’s
• Flange size measuring and breast pump fault-finding
• Antenatal breastfeeding consultations
• An Antenatal Breastfeeding Workshop
• Expressing Workshops

For more information, please contact us.