Order Blueprints

Linda Kutner with Zoey, primary author of Blueprints

What is Blueprints?

The text, Clinical Experience in Lactation: A Blueprint for Internship was designed to offer the aspiring lactation consultant structured guidelines as she begins the clinical practice aspect of her training. It is the only lactation text written exclusively for clinical practice preparation.

Blueprints focuses on the activities and experiences a lactation intern will need to become confident and knowledgeable in her new profession. There are a wide variety of activities, some of which include:

The first section focuses on:

• Teaching breastfeeding classes under different situations.
• Observing labors and deliveries and seeing how different procedures and medical interventions can impact breastfeeding.
• Observing in all areas of the hospital that may have mothers and babies.
• Observing at a WIC clinic, a physician's office, and a lactation clinic and seeing what breastfeeding mothers may be confronted with in these situations.
• Working with breastfeeding mothers and babies in the hospital setting.
  
  All the activities have questions to help focus on the important aspects of that particular activity.

The second part of the text is an assortment of conditions commonly seen in breastfeeding mothers and infants for which the lactation consultant must be competent to assess, evaluate and develop a plan of care.

• Each condition begins with a research or didactic page to assist the student in collecting the information pertaining to that condition. The lactation intern is to use various medical and lactation references as well as the Internet in completing these pages
• Each condition includes history questions pertaining to that particular dyad and places to chart the information obtained from the breastfeeding assessment and evaluation of the mother and infant. The intern then develops a plan of care for the dyad and must explain the rational for her suggestions.

The third section contains a collection of forms that the lactation intern can use in the activities and experiences and a variety of record keeping pages to assist her in keeping track of her hours. The aspiring lactation consultant may not need to complete all the activities and experiences depending on her background. But even if an intern is a labor and delivery nurse, doing the birthing activity from the lactation perspective gives what goes on during the birth an entirely different meaning. This text is to help the intern concentrate on areas where she has the least experience and knowledge to better prepare her for the IBLCE exam.