Pathway One is generally for individuals who have already obtained a minimum of 1000 hours of lactation specific clinical experience through paid or volunteer work as a Recognized Health Professional and/or Recognized Mother Support Counselor.
Pathway requirements are determined by the IBLCE. If you have questions about these requirements, contact the IBLCE at IBLCE.org/contact or by telephone at 703-560-7330.
In order to become eligible to apply for the IBLCE board certifying exam, the following components must be completed:
Lactation Specific Education:
95+ hours of comprehensive lactation training, which Lactation Education Resources provides exclusively online through our Lactation Consultant Training Program. Our lacatation courses are approved by the Lactation Education Accreditation and Approval Review Committee (LEAARC), and can be accessed for 1 full year from your date of purchase. For more information go to: http://www.iblce.org/ and view our YouTube video.
Health Science
Higher education:
Usually included and completed in your health care professional training if you hold a recognized Health Professionals Liscence. If you have not taken any or all of these courses, they can be obtained through an online college or at the closest community college or university. Click here for additional details.
To review the IBLCE health science course requirements, go to the IBLCE Health Sciences Education Guide.
- Biology
- Human Anatomy and Physiology
- Infant and Child Growth and Development
- Introduction to Clinical Research
- Nutrition
- Psychology or Counseling or Communication Skills
- Sociology or Cultural Sensitivity or Cultural Anthropology
Continuing education:
- Basic life support (e.g. CPR) Available at your local hospital, fire department or Red Cross training facility
- Medical documentation (available through our online IBLCE General Education package)
- Professional ethics for health professionals (also in our IBLCE General Education package)
- Medical terminology (also in our IBLCE General Education package)
- Occupational safety and security for health professionals (also in our IBLCE General Education package)
- Universal safety precautions and infection control (also in our IBLCE General Education package)
Lactation Specific Clinical experience:
1000 hours of experience in a “helper” role with breastfeeding mothers and infants. The experience must be obtained within the 5 years immediately prior to applying for the IBLCE examination.
Many health care professionals obtain this experience in their paid work in a setting such as a post-partum unit, nursery, pediatric clinic or similar setting. If you have not worked in any of these settings or need additional clinical hours, Pathway 3 might be the best way for you to obtain your clinical experience.
The IBLCE provides a clinical practice worksheet to help you determine how many clinical hours you have generated before applying to take the exam. Go to IBLCE Documents, go under the Guides column, and click on Lactation Specific Clinical Practice Calculator to bring up the Excel spreadsheet. For more information on clinical hour requirements, please contact the IBLCE or call them at 703-560-7330.
