This story is part of our Quick Hits series. This series brings you breaking news and short updates from throughout the state.
The University of Wyoming has a new initiative to help health professionals get certified as lactation consultants.
Right now, in Wyoming, the university says there are only 25 International Board Certified Lactation Consultants who offer breastfeeding support to new moms.
“We are particularly excited about the potential to strengthen access to lactation care in the rural and frontier communities where those services are often hardest to find,” Lauren Gilbert, director of UW’s Rural Health Institute, said in a press release.
The Institute is running the initiative thanks to a federal Maternal Health Innovation Program grant. It will help two candidates a year with tuition for a University of California San Diego program, which can be completed virtually.
The Rural Health Institute will also cover the cost of the exam required for international certification.
Applications will open to the public on Sept. 21. The deadline is Nov. 13. Awardees are expected to start the program next spring or fall.
This is just one way the Rural Health Institute is trying to close maternal health gaps in Wyoming. It just put on a Maternal Health Summit dedicated to identifying other solutions.
