BreastfeedLA is dedicated to improving the health and well-being of infants and families through education, outreach, and advocacy to promote and support breastfeeding. Your donation is urgently needed to strengthen and grow the work of BreastfeedLA. If you like the work we are doing, please consider giving today. Your generous gift will help offset our costs and will support our mission.
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This year marks the 30th anniversary of the passage of a law making the month of March "Women’s History Month" in the United States.
The observation, interestingly, was born out of a California school district’s celebration of women’s achievements. Today the month of March is set aside to honor the many accomplishments of women through history and the vast strides made by women today.
We certainly don't need a designated month to celebrate the achievements of women throughout our nation, however, having one reminds us to reflect on the state of our nation that has inspired women to make change. These historical moments and movements were inspired by the observations, experiences, and the lives of women and their children. Women gather momentum during specific times in history, coming together to fight for equality, equity, and with the purpose of improving circumstances for themselves and for generations to come.
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At BreastfeedLA, we are reminded everyday about the strength and resiliency of women. We are amazed by the work that our members and our community are able to accomplish on behalf of families - work done primarily by women in the birth and breastfeeding fields. This work is vital. It is as ceaseless and challenging as it is wonderful and fulfilling. Women in our community work every day, in paid and unpaid ways, to ensure that other women and their partners can choose how to labor, birth, parent, and feed their babies, and that they are supported in their choices. I feel blessed to be a part of BreastfeedLA and our movement towards achieving breastfeeding and health equity across all racial and economic groups. During this Women's History Month, we are proud to recognize the women who boldly and tirelessly do this work - and we are honored to do this work with you.
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Arissa Palmer
Executive Director
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Upcoming Events-Continuing Education
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RHBC North
Community Meeting
April 4, 2019
9:30AM-12:00PM
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We're excited for our first RHBC Community Meeting of the year! The LA Department of Public Health will be hosting this meeting at the Zev Yaroslavsky Family Support Center. We have invited our local hospitals, community clinics, CPSP providers, Welcome Baby teams and community organizations.
The focus of the day will be
Motivational Interviewing: A Patient-Centered Counseling Approach
. We will also have the opportunity to network with other hospitals, community clinics and organizations.
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California Family Leave Laws
April 11, 2019
9:00AM-4:30PM
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This Spanish/English training will equip home visitors, health care workers, and child care providers who serve low income and new immigrant communities with information on Paid Family Leave and related workplace rights. Help us create a strong county-wide network of support which will positively impact the number of parents and families who can access these benefits.
The training will provide resources and connection to a statewide network/coalition for regular updated information and feedback when questions arise. This innovative, interactive training incorporates hands-on practice and role play in Spanish and English. Participants will leave the training with new skills, information, and resources that will enable them to help parents and families of Los Angeles thrive.
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Protecting the Breastfeeding Continuum of Care in the Community: What We Can Do
April 26, 2019
9AM-4PM
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With Emily Bernard
Continuity of Care is not a new topic in the healthcare world. It focuses on reducing negative outcomes such as safety and mortality across many specialties. When we apply this to breastfeeding we can translate this into what creates these gaps of continuity which contribute to less than ideal rates of initiation, exclusivity and duration of breastfeeding and the negative outcomes associated with this.
Improving breastfeeding is more than one person, agency or department can tackle. Partnerships and collaboration are essential to creating a continuity of care. We will discuss what partnerships mean to breastfeeding, where to look for them and ways to move forward together towards a common agenda of community continuity of care for breastfeeding.
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Upcoming Events-Lactation Consultant Education
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LES TRAINING PART 2
June 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 2019
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Taught by Brandi Jordan, MSW IBCLC
BreastfeedLA's Lactation Consultant Education Course
is an advanced and comprehensive educational course that provides part 2 of the 90 hours as mandated by the IBLCE for certification as a Lactation Consultant. This information will allow graduates to have the background necessary to prepare students to pass the educational components of the IBCLC exam for certification as an IBCLC.
To sit for the IBCLC certification examination, an individual must meet eligibility criteria in three areas: Health Sciences Education, Lactation Specific Education, and Lactation Specific Clinical Experience. This course satisfies one of the three requirements: Lactation Specific Education.
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For more information and to register for ALL of our events visit us at
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Legislative/Advocacy Updates
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USDA releases
The Economic Impacts of Breastfeeding: A Focus on USDA’s Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)
Breastfeeding rates among participants in USDA's Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) are lower than the U.S. average. This study estimates the effects that increased breastfeeding rates in WIC would have on the number of WIC participants, costs to WIC and Medicaid, and health-related costs that accrue to WIC households or their health insurance providers.
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STATE BILLS TRACKED DURING 2019-20 LEGISLATIVE SESSION
AB 196 (Gonzalez D)
Paid family leave – This spot bill would expand the Paid Family Leave program in order to provide a 100 percent wage replacement benefit for workers earning $100,000 or less annually.
AB 406 (Limón D)
Paid family leave
U
– This spot bill would affect the language- accessibility requirements of Paid Family Leave forms.
AB 1224 (Gray D)
Employee leave: limitations – This bill would remove the 1,250 hours of service eligibility requirement of the California Family Rights Act, and change the size of an eligible employer under the Act from 50 employees to 20. The bill would also remove the requirement that a claimant can receive no more than six weeks of Paid Family Leave benefits within any 12-month period.
SB 135 (Jackson D)
Disability compensation: paid family leave – This spot bill intends to make four changes to the Paid Family Leave program: expand related job protections, extend the leave duration (alludes to six months), broaden the definition of a family member, and increase the wage replacement rate.
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In celebration of Valentine's Day, and all the love you show us and our breastfeeding community, over the next few issues of the Bee we will be sharing our love by featuring some of our most dedicated volunteers and staff who give their time and energy to further breastfeeding equity everyday.
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his week we celebrate Nakeisha Robinson. Nakeisha does so much for BreastfeedLA advocating our mission and cause! We couldn't have held our recent successful Summit without her dedicated commitment!
Spotlight
Nakeisha N. Robinson, MA, LMFT
Nakeisha Robinson is a community health and social justice advocate who partners with local organizations focused on improving the lives of mothers, families and babies in Los Angeles County and the surrounding communities. While working directly in the South Bay area of LA County through community resident and direct service provider educational presentations, program implementation and coalition work, Mrs. Robinson has also garnered extensive experience supervising, managing, and training staff at all levels. Mrs. Robinson has partnered with a host of local organizations including iDREAM for Racial Health Equity, Soul Food for Your Baby, BreastfeedLA, Sports Resource Program, and HavASole on the development and implementation of advocacy, capacity building, and fundraising activities. She has worked passionately and extensively in Los Angeles and surrounding communities around health disparities negatively impacting women, babies, and families. As a community and mental health professional with over 12 years of experience working on improving health access for women and families, she is personally dedicated to supporting perinatal mental health and birth outcomes with mothers and their families. As a mother of a blended family, with two children in the home ages 6 and 3, she understands the challenges and benefits of the amazing motherhood experience. Mrs. Robinson is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist currently working from home providing coaching support to private practice clients, works with local non-profit organizations to build internal capacity, and is an inter-professional education content developer.
Mrs. Robinson holds a MA in Clinical Psychology from California State University, Dominguez Hills.
Thank you Nakeisha for your support of BreastfeedLA and dedication everyday to improving families' lives!
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Partner News & Opportunities
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Eisner Health Milk Depot Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony!
Eisner Health was honored so many joined them for the official opening of the Eisner Health LA Breast Milk Depot on February 26th- The Good+ Foundation, BreastfeedLA, WIC, Hope Street Family Center, Welcome Baby, Southside Coalition, South Los Angeles Health Projects, LA Best Babies, and Dignity Health to name a few.
Eisner Health Milk Depot is open for milk donations and will be holding their first Milk Drive on Saturday, May 11
th
. You are welcome to share the flyers below with your clients, communities, and partners!
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For more information on local partner events visit our website at
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The effects of kangaroo mother care on the time to breastfeeding initiation among preterm and LBW infants: a meta-analysis of published studies
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Recently released in the
International Breastfeeding Journal
is a meta-analysis of the current research surrounding kangaroo care and breastfeeding initiation. Kangaroo mother care is a comprehensive intervention given for all newborns especially for premature and low birthweight infants. It is the most feasible and preferred intervention for decreasing neonatal morbidity and mortality. Even though time to initiating breastfeeding has been examined by randomized controlled trials, varying findings have been reported. Therefore, the main objective of this meta-analysis was to estimate the pooled mean time to initiate breastfeeding among preterm and low birthweight infants. The authors conclude
Kangaroo mother care promotes early initiation of breastfeeding as compared to conventional care method. Therefore, health facilities need to implement the kangaroo mother care for preterm and low birthweight infants.
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When you invest in one lactation student from BreastfeedLA, you invest in a multiplier effect that has a profound impact on Los Angeles' most complex problems of discrimination, poverty, and violence.
It only costs $495 to champion one student to complete our 45 hour lactation education specialist course and $990 to complete our 90 hour lactation consultant course. However, we greatly appreciate gifts of any amount—a single contribution holds the potential to ignite the power of a future lactation consultant and forever change our world!
When she is strengthened, she advocates for herself and changes her community.
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Welcome in spring with a
NEW
job that
you
love!
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Thank you!
Your generous contributions in 2019 help make our work possible.
Our programs are made possible through the generosity of our supporters like YOU! Join the
elite
and be recognized! Please
donate
and help us to continue and remove breastfeeding barriers for mothers and babies in the greater Los Angeles area. Support BreastfeedLA with a monthly donation of just $10 or more per month.
Leaders
of BreastfeedLA are those who gave $500 or more in 2019 or are monthly donors who support the ongoing mission of BreastfeedLA.
Patrons
of BreastfeedLA are individuals who gave $100-$499 in 2019.
Friends
of BreastfeedLA are those who gave $99 or below in 2019.
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Oluwapelumi Adeboyejo
Lori Berkemer
Michele Bragger
Lindsey Rei Branker
Allison Casciato, MD
Leticia Casillas-Sanchez
Rosemarie Cervantes
Jessica Claire
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Tanya Colligan
Wendy DeLeon
Judith Dunaway
Wilhelmina Gandionco
First 5 Los Angeles
HealthConnect One/Birth Equity Leadership Academy (BELA)
Melinda J. Kiely
LA Best Babies Network
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Jill Nighswonger
Joan Ortiz
PAC/LAC
Denise Parker
Linda Robinson
Gail Spivak
Katie Waters-Smith
Magdalene Whitman
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Gwendolyn M. Brown
Wendy McGrail
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Deborah Myers
Lina Nahue
Rita Shertick
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Rebeca Pastrana Sheng
Patricia Spier
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Jennifer Davidson
Linda Goldman
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Sara Hahn
Zanette Pettersen
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We strive to make the Bee an informative source of breastfeeding education and events throughout greater Los Angeles and breastfeeding research and resources from across the globe. Send comments (we LOVE feedback), ideas, announcements and resources to us.
Just click HERE
.
Please note: Inclusion of an item in the Bee does NOT imply endorsement or support of such item by BreastfeedLA, unless specifically noted.
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together we can create a healthier LA for every baby!
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BreastfeedLA
2851 West 120th Street, Suite E #335,
Hawthorne, CA 90250
Phone: 323-210-8505
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