Preparing to Be an IBCLC©, Not Just Pass the Exam

*I am in no way affiliated with the IBCLC Commission or IBLCE (other than actively holding the IBCLC credential) and do not purport to speak on their behalf. You can find information about the IBCLC credential at www.ibclc-commission.org.

It may be helpful to consider the process of becoming an IBCLC© in terms of “hard and soft skills.” *

Preparing to actually be a board-certified lactation consultant takes so much more than just meeting the requirements to sit for and pass the exam. Think of the requirements as the “hard skills”: the lactation-specific education, the health science knowledge, and the clinical hours.

The soft skills are what make you effective. Your ability to counsel someone, your approach to teaching people, your communication skills and methods - these are the building blocks of skilled lactation care. You may have acquired these in the process of earning your current qualifications or licenses.

Clinical lactation care adds more to the equation.

Almost anyone could memorize some lactation facts and pass an exam. But the practice of skilled lactation care as an IBCLC isn’t about memorizing facts.

We don’t tell our clients what to do, and in that way, we are pretty different than many other health care professionals. We educate and offer suggestions, we teach clinical skills and techniques, we create plans with our clients for navigating their lactation journeys, and we provide encouragement and human connection.

Behind the scenes, we read and interpret research using critical reasoning and thinking skills, we apply and integrate knowledge about the current public health environment, and we endeavor to practice ethically and without conflicts of interest that would bias our care.

Skilled, clinical lactation care combines the ability to listen; to teach important skills that people need in order to breastfeed, express their milk, and feed their babies away from the breast; to give the right information at the right time in a manner that a person can receive it; and to communicate effectively, ethically, and responsibly with clients, the health care team, and the general public.

We have to remain open to new knowledge, new concepts, and new ways to help people. This humility sets us apart and allows us to work in relationship with our clients rather than as authoritarian figures.

Thank you for reading Evolve Lactation with Christine Staricka IBCLC. This post is public so feel free to share it.

Acquiring and practicing this particular set of skills is designed to be included in the work you are doing during the lactation-specific clinical experience portion of your exam preparation journey. By working with a mentor, you will have the opportunity to observe their abilities in the consult room, and you will develop your own as you begin to practice under their supervision. Their feedback will allow you to improve those skills over time, and by the end of your clinical experience hours, you should have demonstrated to them that you are a very competent counselor, educator, and consultant and that you can provide skilled, clinical lactation care with a global worldview.