Since COVID-19 has sent all of us to ‘shelter in place’, we are getting asked so many questions about our virtual consultations. Parents want to know what happens during a virtual breastfeeding consultation and how it can be helpful.
So, I wanted to take this opportunity to answer some questions we have been getting about our virtual consultations and explain all that we can accomplish during one.
Let’s get into the questions!
Can a lactation consultant actually help with breastfeeding without being in the same room?
100% yes! We are total ninjas when it comes to this! Our ‘detective’ skills and ability to see the whole picture help us understand your situation and concerns even when we can only see each other through our phones/computers!
What happens at a virtual breastfeeding consultation?
Here is how it works at SDBFC
Before your appointment:
We send you a video on how to do an oral assessment on your child. This is how we check for tongue and lip ties and how everything is working in your baby’s mouth. You can either record yourself doing this assessment on your kiddo and then send it to us before your appt (the preferred method) or we can walk you through this assessment during your consultation.
You fill out an intake form so that we have all of your background information and feeding history before we even meet.
During your appointment:
We discuss your baby’s oral assessment - which looks at suck, tongue range of motion, and overall oral structure
We watch your baby latch and breastfeed, offering advice on positioning and latch, while demonstrating these techniques with our lovely baby dolls.
We discuss milk supply and ways to make sure that your baby is getting enough
We can help with pumping and flange sizing
We co-create a personalized plan of care to help you meet your personal feeding goals.
What type of equipment do I need and is it helpful to have a support person nearby during the consult?
We use Google Hangouts Meet (HIPAA compliant), so you just need your phone. A phone is better than a computer because it allows us to get up close to your baby while we are assessing positioning, latch, and sucking rhythm.
It can be VERY helpful to have a support person with you so that you can just focus on latching/feeding your baby and have someone else hold the phone for you. Also, partner/family support is more crucial than ever now that we don’t have access to in-person support groups and consultations. Your partner will be included in the conversation and tips will be provided so that they can assist and support you with the feeding process.
How can a lactation consultant assess for tongue tie without putting her fingers in my baby’s mouth?
You actually get to do the oral assessment on your child while either recording a video to send to us, during your consult, or both! This is actually really awesome because you get to feel what the lactation consultant would normally feel, helping you better understand how your child’s tongue is functioning… either at max capacity or with room for improvement! We will look for how your baby’s tongue lateralizes, lifts, maintains suction, extends, and cups your finger. We will also view what his/her tongue frenulum and upper lip frenulum look like.
How can a lactation consultant help with positioning and latch during a virtual consult?
Using a baby doll, we can demonstrate positioning techniques, if you need guidance. Once we evaluate your baby’s latch, we can use verbal recommendations and visuals (such as YouTube videos) to demonstrate how to help your baby achieve a wide latch.
I prefer to learn in-person. How can I learn from someone without being in the same room?
We feel the same way! We would prefer to offer an in-person breastfeeding consultation when given the choice. We thrive while sharing space with a family while working with them. We miss our in-person consultations soooooo much! Unfortunately, lack of access to PPE has required us to temporarily suspend in-person consultations provided by the San Diego Breastfeeding Center. So, we all have had to fine-tune our assessment and counseling skills to meet your needs and hopefully we will change your mind about learning from someone via the interwebs :-)
How can we tell if my baby is getting enough without a lactation consultant’s scale?
Now, that is the one downside to virtual consults. No scale to weigh your baby before and after a feeding. So, we have to watch your baby carefully while feeding. We will look for jaw movement, suck/swallow ratios, stamina while feeding, and other indicators for milk transfer. We also might recommend renting a scale from the hospital for weighted feedings for a few days (since there are no in-person support groups to gather this data.) OR you might consider purchasing a scale from Amazon just to track your baby’s weight for a few days, which will give us the information we need to know if your baby is getting enough over a 24 hour period. Also we will be very conservative in our recommendations for supplementation with pumped milk and/or formula. We will make sure that we do everything we can to ensure that your baby is thriving while we work on the feeding details.
Should I just wait until the ‘shelter in place’ has been lifted so I can meet with a lactation consultant in person?
Definitely not! Breastfeeding is not fun when it hurts or feels confusing. We don’t want you to second guess yourself, especially during the heightened pandemic stress we are all under. With possible formula shortages on the horizon, we want to help you solve your breastfeeding challenges ASAP, as well as be a resource when other feeding questions arise.
So, does that help?
Remember, we accept Aetna PPO, Tricare, and UCSD HMOs. Also, we have an amazing sliding scale, so if our cash prices are a deterrent, please call our office (619-724-4117) so that we can offer you a sliding scale rate.
