Lactation Consultant, Lactation Center, Full-Time, Days

ABOUT MARINHEALTH
Are you looking for a place where you are empowered to bring innovation to reality? Join MarinHealth, an integrated, independent healthcare system with deep roots throughout the North Bay. With a world-class physician and clinical team, an affiliation with UCSF Health, an ever-expanding network of clinics, and a new state-of-the-art hospital, MarinHealth is growing quickly. MarinHealth comprises MarinHealth Medical Center, a 327-bed hospital in Greenbrae, and 55 primary care and specialty clinics in Marin, Sonoma, and Napa Counties. We attract healthcare’s most talented trailblazers who appreciate having the best of both worlds: the pioneering medicine of an academic medical center combined with an independent hospital's personalized, caring touch. 

MarinHealth is already realizing the benefits of impressive growth and has consistently earned high praise and accolades, including being Named One of the Top 250 Hospitals Nationwide by Healthgrades, receiving a 5-star Ranking for Overall Hospital Quality from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and being named the Best Hospital in San Francisco/Marin by Bay Area Parent, among others. 

Company:

Marin General Hospital dba MarinHealth Medical Center

Compensation Range:

$59.89 - $89.83

Work Shift:

10 Hour (days) (United States of America)

Scheduled Weekly Hours:

40

Job Description Summary:

The Lactation Consultant is responsible for providing lactation consultation and education for breastfeeding mothers in the inpatient and outpatient settings at Marin General Hospital. The Lactation Consultant has excellent assessment and implementation skills to assist the breastfeeding mother attain her individual goals. The Lactation Consultant functions as a member of a multidisciplinary health care team as a consultant, educator, and mentor. The Consultant also acts as a role model for the nursing and medical staffs, and the patients.

Job Requirements, Prerequisites and Essential Functions:

Job Specifications:

Education:

• Sufficient education to obtain a valid California RN license preferred

• International Board Certified Lactation Consultant or obtain certification within 2 years of hire

• Bilingual (Spanish/English) preferred

Experience:

• Minimum of two years experience in perinatal nursing or perinatal education

• Minimum two years experience counseling postpartum, breastfeeding women in a hospital setting

• Experience supporting breastfeeding in NICU and the outpatient settings preferred

License and Certifications:

• California RN license (RN) required at hire.

• Integrative Agitation Management (IAMTAC) Required within 30 days of hire.

Prerequisite Skills:

• Maintains own continuing education requirements for certification

• Maintains knowledge of trends in health care and specialty, and uses creativity to induce change and to stimulate new program development

• Utilizes and manages supplies and equipment in most cost-effective manner

• Excellent communication skills

• Excellent maternal/infant assessment skills

• Ability to effectively prioritize work responsibilities

• Excellent documentation skills

• Effective teaching skills

• Flexibility in a changing environment

Primary Customer Served (Age Specific Criteria):

​

(X) Infants: Birth up to 1 year

(  ) Toddlers: 1 up to 3 years

(  ) Preschool Children: 3 up to 6 years

(X) School Age Children: 6 up to 12 years

(X) Adolescents: 12 up to 18 years

(X) Early Adults: 18 up to 45 years

(  ) Middle Adults: 45 up to 61 years

(  ) Late Adults: 61 up to 80 years

(  ) Late, Late Adults: 80 years and up

• Employees in this position must be able to demonstrate the knowledge and skills necessary to provide care and/or service based on the physical, psycho/social, educational, safety, and related criteria appropriate to the age of the patients served in his/her assigned service area.

• The lactation consultant will primarily be serving newborn infants and women of childbearing age including adolescent through middle adulthood. Interface with families requires that an understanding of the dynamics between child and parent be present.

Patient Privacy (HIPAA Compliance):

• Employees in this position have access to protected health information. The protected health information a person in this position can access includes demographics, date of service, insurance/billing, medical record summary information, and all other information that may be contained in patient records. This position requires patient health information to perform the functions outlined as part of this position description.

Duties And Responsibilities:

Essential (Not Modifiable)

• Demonstrates leadership by supervising, directing, and delegating appropriately to volunteer team members

• Demonstrates clinical expertise by serving as a clinical expert, role model, and clinical and educational resource to the team, patients, and families

• Consistently demonstrates the ability to transfer scientific knowledge from social, biological and physical sciences in applying the nursing process as follows:

  • Formulates a nursing diagnosis through observation of the patient's physical condition and behavior, and through interpretation of information obtained from the client and others, including the health team

  • Formulates an age-specific care plan, in collaboration with the patient, which ensures that direct and indirect nursing care services provide for the patient's safety, comfort, hygiene, and protection, and for disease prevention and restorative measures

  • Perform skills essential to the kind of nursing action to be taken, explains the health treatment to the patient and family and teaches the client and family how to care for the health needs

  • Delegates tasks to subordinates based on the legal scopes of practice of the subordinates and on the preparation and capability needed in the tasks to be delegated, and effectively supervises nursing care being given by subordinates

  • Evaluates the effectiveness of the care plan through observation of the patient's physical condition and behavior, signs and symptoms of illness, and reactions to treatment and through communication with the patient and health team members and modifies the plan as needed

  • Acts as the patient's advocate, as circumstances require, by initiating action to improve health care or to change decisions or activities, which are against the interests or wishes of the patient, and by giving the patient the opportunity to make informed decisions about health care before it is provided

• Demonstrates professional accountability, as described by national lactation standards

• Demonstrates expertise in the area of lactation consultation skills

• Supervises and evaluates breastfeeding, teaching practices as demonstrated by staff to ensure consistency of teaching standards

• Supervises and directs the development and implementation of an effective prenatal breastfeeding program at Marin General Hospital

• In collaboration with the Clinical Nurse Manager, assists in the annual performance appraisal verifying each staff member’s clinical competence in breastfeeding practices. May initiate performance counseling and develop performance improvement plans as directed by the Clinical Nurse Manager

• Initiates and receives referrals from the medical and nursing staffs, and coordinates the counseling of the breastfeeding family

• Identifies, analyzes, and formulates a plan of care based on approved protocols that results in the attainment of the breastfeeding mother’s individual goals

• Communicates with the medical and nursing staffs as well as other key hospital personnel the plan of care formulated with the patient to assure continuity of care

• Acts as a role model and resource to the staff to communicate, implement, and support department objectives and standards as they relate to the breastfeeding family

• Collaborates with physician advisors in the development and implementation of Lactation Program standards

• Assesses educational needs of staff; conducts formal and informal inservices on relevant topics related to lactation management for the nursing and medical staffs; coordinates annual breastfeeding competencies for the nursing staff

• Coordinates ongoing evaluation of patient satisfaction for the Lactation Program

• Collaborates with the Family Centered Maternity and Intensive Care Nursery staff to ensure continuity of care regarding advice and follow-up plans

• Develops, with staff, customer-oriented standards of care

• Utilizes current research findings in practice to annually review the policies, procedures, and protocols related to lactation management

• Initiates and/or participates in unit-based performance improvement activities

• Serves as liaison with outpatient Lactation Programs in the community; coordinates teaching standards with outpatient programs to ensure continuum of care

• Develops system for documentation of all patient-related activities

Secondary (Modifiable)

• Other duties as assigned.

Accommodation:

Qualified applicants with disabilities may request reasonable accommodation during the application process by contacting Human Resources at 415-925-7040 or [email protected].

 

C.A.R.E.S. Standards:

MarinHealth seeks candidates ready to model our C.A.R.E.S. standards—Communication, Accountability, Respect, Excellence, Safety—which foster a healing, trust-based environment for patients and colleagues.

 

Health & Immunizations:

To protect employees, patients, and our community, MarinHealth requires measles, mumps, varicella, and annual influenza immunizations as a condition of employment (and annually thereafter). COVID-19 vaccination/booster remains strongly recommended. Medical or religious exemptions will be considered consistent with applicable law.

 

Compensation:

The posted pay range complies with applicable law and reflects what we reasonably expect to pay for this role. Individual pay is set by skills, experience, qualifications, and internal/market equity, consistent with MarinHealth’s compensation philosophy. Positions covered by collective bargaining agreements are governed by those agreements.

 

Equal Employment:

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, protected veteran status or disability status, and any other classifications protected by federal, state, and local laws.