Breast milk is now widely accepted as best for newborns and babies by health care professionals. But many new mothers continue to have questions and concerns about breast-feeding, and others stop the practice because of frustration, misunderstanding and lack of support.
Rose Cannon, Ph.D., RN, an instructor at Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing, wants advanced nurse practitioners to be able to help those new moms with breast-feeding.
Cannon is president of the Southeastern Lactation Consultant Association.
On April 24, she is co-teaching a workshop for nurse practitioners along with lactation consultant Amy Spangler. Called "Breast-feeding Management for the Health Professional: A Road Map to Success," the workshop will be at the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing in Atlanta.
Although many hospitals have lactation consultants, having nurse practitioners and midwives who are knowledgeable about breastfeeding can help new mothers, Cannon said.
The workshop and the course are to "get all professionals on the same page with the same background and information. By having the course in the curriculum, midwives, pediatric nurse practitioners and women's health specialists can leave here with the solid basic knowledge of how breast milk works for babies," Cannon said.
While leaders of La Leche League, a breastfeeding advocacy group, and many mothers knew the benefits of breast-feeding, "what has changed is that now there is evidence-based practice," Cannon said. "We know for certain that breast milk is valuable to give a baby a good start.
"We have learned that when the baby stays near the mom, it affects the milk production. We know that breast milk can help prime tiny neonates' GI tracts, and if it's the first food they get, they do so much better [in growth rates]. And we know there is no way to duplicate breast milk; a mother produces breast milk designed especially for the needs of that one baby," she said.
"This is important for post partum nurses to know and it's important for prenatal instructors to know."
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