About Janice Mannering, Lactation Consultant
Prices
Benefits for mothers and babies
Services typically provided by an IBCLC
Reasons for consulting with a lactation consultant (IBCLC)
Professional Standard for Lactation Consultation
The Role of an IBCLC

Janice Mannering has been a registered nurse since 1982. She obtained her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the University of Toronto in 2000. She worked at the Hospital for Sick Children for 17 years then moved to the Brantford General Hospital in 1999. Currently Janice works as a staff nurse in the Labour & Delivery unit at BGH. In 2006 she successfully obtained her Canadian Perinatal Nursing Certification.

Janice became an Internationally Board Certified Lactation Consultant in 1997. She developed and ran the breastfeeding clinic at the BGH from its opening in March 2000 until it closed its doors in March 2005.

Janice has her own private practice breastfeeding consulting business and is well known locally through her clinic, classes and presentations on breastfeeding. She makes her home in Brantford, Ontario along with her husband, son and three cats.
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Prices:

Benefits for mothers and babies

The primary purpose of International Board Certification is to benefit the public by setting standards for entry into the lactation consultant profession. Mothers can be assured that the designation IBCLC identifies a member of the health care team who can provide substantive breastfeeding assistance and skilled technical management of breastfeeding problems.
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Services typically provided by an IBCLC

Lactation consultants (IBCLCs) may provide some or all of the following services:
• private consultations (at the Women's Wellness Centre)

• telephone consultations
 
• prenatal and postnatal breastfeeding education classes
 
• educational materials and literature
 
• advice on lactation equipment
 
• breast pump rental
 
• in-service education for other health professionals

You may self-refer to a lactation consultant (IBCLC), or you may be referred by your doctor, midwife, child health nurse, physiotherapist, dietician, pharmacist, naturopath, or mother support counselor. As a member of the health care team, the lactation consultant (IBCLC) will liaise with your primary health care provider/s to help you and your baby receive supportive and coordinated care.
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Reasons for consulting with a lactation consultant (IBCLC)

Listed below are some of the reasons why you might decide to consult a lactation consultant (IBCLC), before your baby is born, at any time postnatally, or later in your breastfeeding relationship:
• problems with your baby's attachment to the breast and/or suckling
 
• sore or damaged nipples
 
• concerns or problems with your milk supply - too little or too much
 
• unsettled breastfed baby
 
• breastfeeding twins or multiples (best to consult during pregnancy)
 
• preterm baby
 
• relactation after stopping breastfeeding, or to induce lactation for an adopted baby
 
• babies with medical problems - e.g. failure to thrive, gastroesophageal reflux, lactose intolerance, cleft lip and/or palate, Down's syndrome, neurological impairment, metabolic problem
 
• maternal problems that impact on breastfeeding - e.g. unusual breast or nipple anatomy, history of breast surgery, physical disability, chronic condition requiring long-term medication (where possible, consult during pregnancy)
 
• mastitis or recurrent blocked ducts
 
• advice about breast pumps or other lactation equipment such as nipple shields, breast shells for inverted or sore nipples, breastfeeding supplementer (e.g. Supply Line
 
• expressing and storing breast milk
 
• combining breastfeeding with working or studying outside the home
 
• hospitalization of mother and/or baby
 
• breastfeeding and food intolerances or allergies
 
• mixed feeding (breast milk and infant formula)
 
• weaning your baby, toddler or older child
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The Role of an IBCLC

International Board Certified Lactation Consultants (IBCLCs), Registered Lactation Consultants (RLC) are allied health care providers who, by meeting eligibility requirements and by passing an independent examination, possess the necessary skills, knowledge, and attitudes to provide quality breastfeeding assistance to babies and mothers.  In the United States, "Registered Lactation Consultant" and "RLC" are additional trademarked designations that refer to and may only be used by IBCLCs. 

The title International Board Certified Lactation Consultant identifies a specialist in lactation management. The letters IBCLC signify a health care provider who possesses the necessary skills, knowledge and attitudes to provide substantive breastfeeding assistance and skilled technical management of lactation-related problems.

Breastfeeding is important to women and their infants. Most women attempt to breastfeed, but many wean earlier than they wish due to problems that are either avoidable or manageable. IBCLCs have the knowledge and skills to meet these women's needs. IBCLCs work to prevent and solve breastfeeding problems and to encourage a social environment that supports breastfeeding families.

With a focus on preventive health care, IBCLCs encourage self-care, empowering parents to make their own decisions, prenatally and postnatally. IBCLCs use a problem solving approach to provide appropriate information, recommendations and referrals. They work in a variety of settings:
• hospitals, including maternity units, domiciliary services and pediatric units
 
• neonatal intensive care units and special care nurseries
 
• lactation clinics, maternal and child health services, parenting centers
 
• private practice as a lactation consultant
 
• general medical practice, and pediatric and obstetric practices

IBCLCs are the members of the health care team who have a specialist knowledge of, and primary focus on, breastfeeding.  They are the consultants whom mothers and other health professionals turn to when skilled assistance is required. The IBLCE Competency Statements identify and summarize the special knowledge and skills included in the role of the IBCLC.

Experience has shown that IBCLCs contribute to improved breastfeeding practices and success rates and that that they have the ideal qualifications to help their hospitals become Baby Friendly. By supporting and educating their colleagues, the overall standard of breastfeeding care is improved amongst all staff.

The IBCLC credential brings together health professionals and mother support counsellors, who share a common knowledge base in human lactation. Among those who become IBCLCs are midwives, nurses, health visitors, child health nurses, physicians, pediatricians, obstetricians, educators, dietitians, occupational therapists, physiotherapists and experienced mother support counselors. Typically, they have spent several years and hundreds of hours of study acquiring the experience and education which are the necessary pre-requisites for certification.

The IBCLC credential is widely recognized by employers, colleagues and consumers as the gold standard in breastfeeding expertise. IBCLCs have passed a rigorous certification exam and keep their knowledge and skills up to date through a compulsory recertification program. They are required to practice within a Code of Ethics. The certification exam is an independent means of evaluating whether a candidate has reached the required level of competence to practice as a lactation consultant. Because of the standard and reputation of IBLCE certification, IBCLCs are the only lactation consultants recognized by the International Lactation Consultant Association (ILCA), and all national professional associations for lactation consultants, throughout the world.
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Professional Standard for Lactation Consultation

International Board Certified Lactation Consultants (IBCLC), Registered Lactation Consultants (RLC) help mothers breastfeed their babies, in challenging situations. By gaining the experience and education necessary to pass the International Board Certification Examination, Board Certified specialists in lactation management prove to their patients and colleagues on the healthcare team that they are competent practitioners - committed to the health and well-being of breastfeeding mothers and babies in their care.  Lactation consulting is an exciting and expanding allied health field.
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