To help mothers with their breastfeeding journey, several Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas staff took the initiative to help increase the number of lactation resource specialists across CHC/SEK’s service area.
When Lactation Counselor and Dental Hygienist Kim Fowler met with the Kansas Breastfeeding Coalition, she was asked what her one wish would be to help families with their breastfeeding needs.
Kim responded with “boots on the ground.” Kim, the first and only Lactation Counselor at CHC/SEK, wanted lactation counseling to be available to more new mothers.
“Wouldn’t it be nice to live in Mound City and not have to drive here to talk to me?” she said. “Wouldn’t it be nice to see somebody who is right there or close to you? I’m hoping we could eventually have somebody in all our clinics so that new mommies can feel really good about what they are doing.”
The Breastfeeding Coalition provided 10 scholarships for the Lactation Resource Specialist class. Staff, who come from different departments and several CHC/SEK locations, took the initiative to begin the program.
“When I was presented with the opportunity to take the lactation consultant course, I was thrilled,” said Kylie Paulsen, a community health worker who serves CHC/SEK’s Linn County clinics. “I have always had a passion for mothers and babies, I even started out in college wanting to be an OB. As a community health worker, I work with a wide range of individuals with different needs. To be able to expand the capacity in which I can help and support our patients is so exciting to me.”
Most of the staff who became lactation counselors were already visiting with new mothers and their babies, including dental hygienists and nutrition counselors.
“We have a lot of people here who do a lot of things that involve feeding a baby,” said Kim, the oral health educator in pediatric and family practice. She talks to families during their child’s Well Child Checks. “I’m really excited for this. We now have this little army of people that help our newest patients.”
Breastfeeding is a learned experience, Kim says. That’s why having the support of a lactation resource specialist can help with techniques and other questions or needs that pop up when learning how to breastfeed.
“It’s one of those things where everybody thinks is natural but it’s still a learned experience,” Kim says. “Not everybody has a great support system, so I like that’s what community health does, we’re that support system for our patients. This gives us another avenue to help a mom.”
CHC/SEK hosted a Clinical Lactation Skills Day at the John U. Parolo Education Center on Nov. 8 where future lactation resource specialists from the community and CHC/SEK learned breastfeeding basics using hands-on skills stations and case studies. A total of 26 people were trained, with 5 CHC/SEK achieving their Certified Breastfeeding Specialist certification and more soon to finish. To visit with a lactation specialist, ask during your next visit or call 620-231-9873.