Counseling Nursing Families: A Lactation Consultant’s Guide (8th Edition)

PDF: 40.5 MB

By: Judith Lauwers, Lactation Education Accreditation and Approval Review Committee

Counseling Nursing Families: A Lactation Consultant’s Guide continues to offer a unique, evidence-based focus on counseling and communication skills for lactation consultants and specialists in its updated eighth edition. Published in association with the Lactation Education Accreditation and Approval Review Committee (LEAARC), this guide provides practical strategies and research-based information to support nursing parents and families.

The text is ideal as a foundational resource for students preparing to practice as lactation consultants, helping them develop strong counseling and communication skills essential to clinical practice.

Educational Approach

The authors intentionally present concepts using clear, accessible language, allowing students to master essential principles before progressing to more advanced scientific resources. This learner-centered approach makes the book especially effective as a first text in lactation education.

The eighth edition has been carefully revised to:

• Use inclusive and respectful language

• Reflect the latest research in breastfeeding and lactation science

• Update clinical protocols and counseling strategies, including evolving approaches such as the management of mastitis

Clinical Relevance

This essential guide teaches readers how to:

• Apply evidence-based knowledge to day-to-day clinical practice

• Address counseling challenges with sensitivity and professionalism

• Support families in meeting their individual lactation and feeding goals

The book emphasizes both clinical competence and an understanding of the emotional and social dimensions of lactation counseling.

Features and Benefits

• Embraces the diversity of nursing families, including mothers, fathers, and nonbinary and noncisgender parents

• Chapter topics are mapped to core clinical competencies for the lactation consultant profession

• Updated to include the latest nutrition guidelines, standards, and research

• New and expanded content covering:

  • Microaggressions

  • Opiates and substance use

  • Mental health considerations

  • LGBTQ+ families

  • Online support groups and social media influencers

• Addresses challenges emerging during and after the COVID-19 pandemic, including:

  • Telehealth practices

  • Communication challenges related to face masks

• Comprehensive glossary with over 900 lactation-related terms

• Full-color clinical photographs to aid in the identification of clinical conditions

• Numerous figures and tables to summarize and reinforce key concepts

Appropriate Courses

This text is well-suited for use in:

• Human Lactation

• Breastfeeding: Practice and Research (WHNP programs)

• Advanced Postpartum / Newborn courses