Boston Breastfeeding Coalition Newsletter
January 2022
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"I'm living proof that screening can find cervical cancer at an early stage, when treatment works best." - Tamika Felder, cervical cancer survivor and founder of Tamika & Friends, a non-profit, community-based cancer advocacy organization
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January is Cervical Cancer Awareness Month |
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Cervical cancer can be detected by a Pap smear, which detects cell changes which can become cervical cancer, and the HPV test, which looks for the virus that can cause those changes. Early cervical cancer may not cause noticeable symptoms, which is why testing regularly is important!
The HPV vaccine protects against the types of the HPV virus that can cause cervical cancers. The vaccine is recommended for those under 26 years of age, and in some cases doctors may recommend individuals ages 27 to 45 to receive it.
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COVID-19 Vaccine Highlight |
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Safety and Effectiveness of COVID-19 Vaccination During Pregnancy |
Although the overall risks are low, people who are pregnant or recently pregnant are at an increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19 compared with people who are not pregnant.
Feel free to explore the information provided by the CDC here. Studies show that no adverse pregnancy-related outcomes resulted from vaccines similar to the COVID-19 vaccine, and recent studies furthermore demonstrate its efficacy at decreasing infection rates in pregnant people.
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January is National Stalking Awareness Month. Make sure to visit the Stalking Prevention, Awareness, and Resource Center (SPARC) website to find information, resources, policy, and protocol development tips.
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Join the January Boston Breastfeeding Coalition Meeting!
Thursday, January 20, 12:00pm - 1:30pm
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Program Manager for Health Equity Accelerator's Equity in Pregnancy Initiative
The person in this role will help to roll-out and expand innovative interventions aimed at reducing racial inequities in pregnancy outcomes. Please reach out to Gwyneth Jones (Gwyneth.Jones@bmc.org) if interested or with any questions.
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Employment Opportunities at Rosie's Place
Rosie's Place is a multi-service community center that offers a variety of services, including shelter and meals, legal assistance, community outreach, ESOL classes, and more. Open positions include Volunteer Services Associate and Essential Services Worker.
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Boston While Black, a network of young professionals, community activists, creatives, and politicians, all with a focus of advancing Boston's Black communities and creating a space to network and connect, is looking for team members! Current open positions include Director of Marketing, Director of Operations, and Community and Events Manager.
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There is a variety of volunteering opportunities at Rosie's Place! You can help out in the food kitchen, teach a class, high school students can learn about social justice issues while earning community service hours, and you can coordinate a drive for much-needed items!
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Our support groups are still meeting, just virtually! We are looking for more volunteers to help us support mothers. Any direct lactation mentoring done during virtual support groups can count towards IBCLC hours.
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We love staying up-to-date with your news! If you want us to share out updates, events, flyers, webinars, or job opportunities, let us know. You can email us at bostonbreastfeeding@bmc.org or tag @bostonbreastfeeding on relevant Facebook posts and we can re-share on social media or add to our Coalition Newsletters.
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Educational Materials, Resources, and Webinars |
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The Boston Public Health Commission has released guidance on how to use COVID-19 home test kits in English and in Spanish. You can also find instructions from the MA Department of Public Health here.
Service Providers and Community Organizations can also request test kits. Fill out this online form to submit your proposal.
Please note that if your proposal is approved, you’ll need to pick up the kits from a warehouse in West Roxbury.
Supplies are limited, and priority will be given to proposals that address race and place-based inequities in COVID-19 spread and testing access in a way that is culturally and linguistically competent and that quickly connects test kits to high-need communities and vulnerable populations.
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Monday, February 28, 2022, from 1:00pm - 2:30pm EST, join the third part of the 8-part "Every Step of the Way through the First 1,000 Days" webinar series.
Presenters will discuss breastfeeding policies, systems, and lactation-friendly environments within Early Care and Education (ECE) settings, Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), workplace and food pantries. Continuing education credits are pending approval.
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Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) can impact a child's health and behavior for the rest of their life. A new campaign by the American Academy of Pediatrics aims to help raise awareness as to the importance of positive childhood experiences and provides a variety of social media graphics and hashtags to share and educate parents, caregivers, and other adults. Find the graphics below, and all posts should include the hashtag #Findyour3 and #Prevent ACEs.
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Childbirth Educator Training Program |
Join the 10-week Tuesday evening course which begins on March 8th, 2022, from 5:00pm to 9:00pm. At this time, the course is going to be held online with as much as possible of it being in-person at Newton Wellesley Hospital.
The course will provide childbirth education, mentorship and partnership, as well as teaching you how to provide as much support as possible to expectant families. In the end, you will receive a BACE certificate as a Childbirth Educator.
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Breastfeeding and Mental Health Pocket Guide
Mental health providers should know the positive correlation between breastfeeding and mental health and the negative correlation between weaning and mental health and speak to patients about the importance of breastfeeding for positive mental health outcomes. Download the Breastfeeding and Mental Health Guidance Pocket Guide at mibreastfeeding.org/tools under the “Mental Health” tab.
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This guide lists programs and organizations that provide free diapers to community members with updated contact information and eligibility requirements. The guide includes locations for Greater Boston, Northeastern Massachusetts, and Southeastern Massachusetts.
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Regularly updated with descriptions, contact info, locations, hours, and website links for important basic family needs.
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Resources and tools to help institutions, community organizations, schools, and worksites to improve consistency and collaborations with other organizations to ensure a seamless support system for lactation.
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The Blueprint, developed with a public health lens, aims to increase local capacity to implement community-driven approaches to support chest/breastfeeding, centered on the needs of populations disproportionately impacted by structural barriers that leads to low rates of breastfeeding.
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Are you interested in receiving this newsletter in Spanish?
Le interesaría recibir este boletín en español?
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Por favor déjenos saber si le interesaría recibir una versión de este boletín en español!
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Are you a Breastfeeding Scholar who is looking to connect with other Scholars?
Join the private Facebook Group just for Breastfeeding Scholars - a centralized location to stay updated on CERP offerings, scholarship opportunities, network with peers, and share and find resources.
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Vital Village Network's Boston Breastfeeding Coalition is committed to improving access to breastfeeding support for every parent in Boston, promoting connections between individuals and organizations that engage in breastfeeding advocacy, and supporting pathways for professional lactation counselors. |
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