Hello!
My name is Kristen Kratz. I am an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) as well as a Registered Nurse.
I am a member of the International Lactation Consultant Association and the Pennsylvania Resource Organization for Lactation Consultants. In addition to my IBCLC training I have completed the following Masterclass's; Oral Habilitation of the Breastfeeding Dyad and Gut-Brain connection.
My Story
I began my journey of assisting breastfeeding moms (parents) in 2009. My compassion for helping others breastfeed began with the experience of breastfeeding my own two children. I can vividly remember the night my husband and I brought our son home from the hospital. It was 2:00am and we had every breastfeeding book and pamphlet known to man sitting out on our kitchen table, but no matter how much we read and how hard we tried, we could not get our son to latch. I felt alone and heartbroken and told God that I never wanted another mother to experience that feeling! From that moment on I committed to doing everything I could to help mothers meet their breastfeeding goals. With the help of lactation counselors and consultants, I successfully breastfed both of my children. I was lucky enough to be able to tandem nurse both of them.
My passion to help families meet their breastfeeding goals led me to take educational courses and became a volunteer breastfeeding counselor for the Family Breastfeeding Association and Nursing Mothers Advisory Council. After internships and classes, I was able to sit for my boards and became an IBCLC. I have experience working as an IBCLC in hospitals, outpatient settings and home visits.
No matter where you are in your breastfeeding journey, I am here to help you meet your goals and will deliver my care with kindness and compassion.
Why an IBCLC?
An IBCLC (International Board Certified Lactation Consultant) has the highest accredited education in lactation. We function and contribute as members of the maternal-child health team.*
An IBCLC is required to complete 14 health and science courses from an accredited institution, complete 95 hours of lactation specific education, and have 300-1000 hours in supervised clinical practice.**
After these steps are completed, and with the approval of the International Board of Lactation Examiners (IBCLE), we are eligible to sit for the board examination. Once certified by the IBCLE, we are ready to get started. Every five years we are required to re-certify with 75 continuing education credits.
To learn more click the links below:
*https://iblce.org/about-iblce/
**https://ibclc-commission.org/step-1-prepare-for-ibclc-certification/lactation-specific-clinical-experience/