Health professional education: a key to successful breastfeeding promotion programmes.

The San Diego Lactation Program now incorporated as "Wellstart" provides prenatal guidance counseling and service to nursing mothers telephone consulting service to any nursing family or health professional in the community training to nurses medical and nurse practitioner students residents in pediatric and obstetrics and to international professionals. The staff includes a pediatric faculty a qualified pediatric nurse practitioner and a part-time nutritionist. The Lactation Clinic provides evaluations of lactation progress breast examinations observation of nursing technique advice and treatment and social service if indicated. An intensive care nursery consultation is available. Medical professionals receive 16 hours of clinical training. International health professional education has been provided to 50 groups from 13 countries in the San Diego clinic. Training involves 60 hours of seminar instruction 24 hours of clinical work and case conferences 16 hours of field observations 12 hours of review of teaching methods and extensive reading assignments. Millions of mothers have been influenced by this program.