Lactation Registered Nurse Specialist

Job Description

Educates and assists breastfeeding mothers and families to foster a successful breastfeeding experience. Provides direct and indirect patient care as well as serving as a resource for other members of the healthcare team. Ensures implementation of effective family-centered breastfeeding program by ongoing collaboration with pediatricians, neonatologists, obstetricians, and nursing staff; promotes breastfeeding and educates the community in prenatal and postpartum periods. Provides physical and psychosocial support, education, and discharge planning during childbirth hospitalization.

Job Responsibility

• Performs and documents initial and ongoing breastfeeding assessment including spiritual and cultural needs; prioritizes data collection based on the patient's immediate condition or needs including spiritual and cultural needs.
• Identifies actual and / or potential nursing diagnoses derived from assessment data, and indicates expected outcomes; reviews physician's orders with registered nurse to determine contraindicated medications for breastfeeding mothers.
• Reassesses patients and reports significant breast changes, bonding concerns, mood alterations, etc. to registered nurse in charge of unit and to obstetrician and / or pediatrician, as appropriate; identifies expected breastfeeding outcomes which are measurable, realistic and attainable in relation to resources available.
• Identifies expected breastfeeding outcomes which are measurable, realistic and attainable in relation to resources available.
• Works with staff registered nurse to achieve maximum breastfeeding outcomes; teaches prenatal breastfeeding classes to expectant parents; facilitates post-discharge breastfeeding support group for breastfeeding women in the community.
• Provides education to maternal-child staff to reinforce and update knowledge regarding lactation process and techniques in formal in-service setting.
• Performs performance improvement activities related to breastfeeding indicators including analysis of data and implementing / evaluating process improvement programs.
• Reviews, revises, and develops maternal-child department policies and procedures relating to the breastfeeding program.
• Maintains a telephone "warm line" to answer questions and concerns of breastfeeding mothers in the community; reviews and evaluates breastfeeding products, videos, literature, and equipment keeping in mind the need for cost containment.
• Performs related duties as required. All responsibilities noted here are considered essential functions of the job under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Duties not mentioned here, but considered related are not essential functions.

Job Qualification

The salary range and / or hourly rate listed is a good faith determination of potential base compensation that may be offered to a successful applicant for this position at the time of this job advertisement and may be modified in the future.When determining a team member's base salary and / or rate, several factors may be considered as applicable (e.g., location, specialty, service line, years of relevant experience, education, credentials, negotiated contracts, budget and internal equity).