Lactation Specialist RN

Job Summary and Responsibilities

As a Lactation Professional, you will be a compassionate expert, empowering new parents to achieve their lactation goals and promoting optimal infant nutrition.

Every day, you will provide evidence-based education, assessment, and individualized support prenatally and postpartum. You'll address feeding challenges, develop personalized care plans, and collaborate with healthcare providers to ensure integrated support.

To be successful in this role, you will possess deep clinical knowledge, exceptional communication, empathy, and patience, adapting strategies to individual needs for successful infant feeding and improved health outcomes.

• Leads the coordination and oversight of the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative certification process, including documentation, scheduling, site visits, and presenting survey findings to leadership
• Serves as the site expert for all regulatory standards related to perinatal education and lactation practices, maintaining current knowledge of evolving requirements
• Develops, coordinates, and delivers educational programs for nursing staff, community stakeholders, patients, and families aligned with Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative and The Joint Commission (TJC) standards
• Revises and updates patient order sets, care pathways, standards of care, and patient education materials in collaboration with multidisciplinary teams
• Functions as a clinical resource for staff, patients, and medical staff across all care settings, monitoring lactation documentation and developing performance improvement action plans as needed
• Identifies and prioritizes learning needs across all perinatal care provider divisions, encouraging open communication to support continuous staff development

• Bachelor's of Nursing
• Two (2) years of leadership experience or nursing education experience in OB nursing specialties
• Minimum of five (5) years experience in L&D or Postpartum nursing
• Experience with physician relations and patient experience
• Registered Nurse: CA
• Basic Life Support - CPR
• Advanced Cardiac Life Support
• Neonatal Resuscitation Program
• International Board Certified Lactation Consultant
• Certified Lactation Counselor
• Must have one of the following certifications within six (6) months of hire:
  • Lamaze Certified Childbirth Educator
  • Certified Childbirth Educator - CCE PCE
  • Certified Childbirth Educator - ACBE and Certified Doula
• Knowledge of breastfeeding care and education principles

• Master's of Nursing
• Knowledge of program plan development, adult learning skills and familiarity with regulatory and accrediting agency standards

Please be advised that this location requires quarterly American Heart Association (AHA) Resuscitation Quality Improvement (RQI) competency certification post-hire. This ongoing competency is required through resources internal to the facility; outside RQI competency resources are not acceptable for Common Spirit Health compliance requirements.

Mercy Medical Center, a Dignity Health member, has been building a rich history of care in our community for more than 100 years. We have grown from a small one-story wooden structure into a major healthcare provider with a new 186-bed main campus, offering the latest in facility design and technology. Mercy also operates Outpatient Centers, a Cancer Center and several rural clinics.

Wherever you work throughout our system, you will find faces of experience with dedication to high quality, personalized care. Joining our 1,300 employees, 230 physicians and many volunteers, you can help carry out our commitment to providing our community with the excellence they have come to associate with Mercy Medical Center.

One Community. One Mission. One California