The International Board of Lactation Consultant Examiners® (IBLCE®) and International Lactation Consultant Association® (ILCA®) have recognized CHRISTUS St. Michael Health System for excellence in lactation care.
CHRISTUS St. Michael 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 it has provided recent breastfeeding training for medical staff who care for new families, and has recently completed activities that help protect, promote and support breastfeeding.
“As a Texas Ten Step facility and an IBCLC Care Award recipient, CHRISTUS St. Michael strives to improve the health of mothers and babies by encouraging breastfeeding as a preferred method of feeding for newborns and infants,” said Klorisa Withers, RN, BSN, IBCLC, Certified Lactation Consultant with CHRISTUS St. Michael. “Our recognitions validate the efforts being made by our facility to help mothers get off to a good start with breastfeeding and to support them in reaching their goals.”
Regina Maria Roig-Romero, Board Chair of IBLCE states, “Facilities that receive the IBCLC Care Award have taken initiative to improve the overall health of their patients by making breastfeeding a priority and implementing lactation support programs. An important part of providing excellent breastfeeding care is having expert assistance available when the breastfeeding family needs it. IBCLC professionals are the health care professionals best suited to help families achieve their breastfeeding goals.”
Recipients of the IBCLC certificate focus on preventive care. Lactation consultants 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 families overcome breastfeeding challenges, providing accurate information and continuing to support them as their babies grow. They assist families returning to work or school, help families 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.
According to Michele Griswold, President of ILCA, “IBCLCs help families realize the most precious bond with their children. They also assist families in providing their children with the best possible start in life. At ILCA, we are proud to support the IBCLC Care Award because we recognize the significant contributions of IBCLCs to improving global health outcomes at the local level.”
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 28,000 such professionals in 105 countries worldwide that are IBCLCs (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.
According to womenshealth.gov, breastfeeding protects the baby from illness and lowers the risk of asthma, childhood leukemia, obesity, ear infections, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), and more. Breastfeeding also benefits the mother’s health by lowering the risk of Type 2 diabetes, certain types of breast cancer, and ovarian cancer.
For more information on breastfeeding contact one of our Lactation Consultants at
903-614-6202 or go to www.christusstmichael.org.
