Kirsten Sonneville-Douglass, RN, is a lactation consultant at Trinity Health Oakland. She works with new mothers to establish breastfeeding and answer any questions they might have. In honor of breastfeeding month, she answered a couple questions about her role.
What is a lactation consultant? I am an International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant® (IBCLC®) There are a lot of different credentials in the lactation world and IBCLC is the gold standard of lactation care. In a hospital setting I provide support to our staff, physicians and to our families. This support is important so a mother can initiate breastfeeding as well as build her confidence.
What does your day look like? When I get into the hospital, I review the files of patients we have in the unit and complete some administrative work before I begin rounding with patients. When I meet with mothers, I let them know I’ve reviewed their chart, but I ask them how they think breastfeeding is going. One key thing I do is ask open-ended questions; I don’t want a yes or no I want the patient to tell me a story. Most of the times it’s simply listening. I only get to have 24 or 48 hours with a mother so I provide them with the information they need while I can. I also manage the outpatient support group held on Tuesday, so I see some of the older babies and do our staff education.
What is the most common concern you hear from mothers? Mothers often say they don’t have enough milk.
How do you answer this concern? In a word, education. We empower the mothers. We ask questions like: Did your breasts change at all during pregnancy? If they say yes, then we say, “awesome, you already have milk!” Your body starts producing milk around 16 or 17 weeks. Your body is amazing, and it is already there. We help mothers learn how to manually express breastmilk with their hand so they can see they are producing milk. Part of breastfeeding is seeing and believing.
What is your favorite part of your job? When I build a mother’s confidence. When I re-round and a mom says, “we breastfed.” You can see them glow and that empowers them to keep feeding and to keep trying to provide for her baby.
Why did you become a lactation consultant? I was influenced by my own breastfeeding struggles and journey with my son. I am an older mom and knew breastfeeding was going to be an important thing for me. It was not an easy experience for me, and I felt bullied by my son’s doctor into doubting my ability to breastfeed. After that experience I was determine that no one else should feel this way.