Spoiler alert…it doesn’t involve cleaning your house!
What to expect during a visit:
Thank you for scheduling an appointment with one of our talented consultants at Nurture! We look forward to working with you and joining your village.
We love working with clients in their homes! Appointment times have a 30 minute arrival window due to previous appointments, travel time, and possible traffic. Your scheduled appointment time is an approximate arrival time. If you’re consultant is going to be more than 15 minutes early or late, they will send you a text with their exact ETA. Expect your initial consultation to last around 1-1.5 hours.
Once your consultant arrives, they will wash or sanitize their hands before getting started. They will review any information they may questions on from intake forms, get caught up on what has been happening with feeding, and begin by listening to your concerns and answering your questions. Your consultant will examine baby, your breasts, and observe a feeding. They will ask permission before examining you or your baby. A scale is available to use if a weight check or weighted feed is indicated. Of course, sometimes we walk into a home and baby is crying in hunger and we dive right into feeding, and do the consultation in reverse. That’s ok, too, we are flexible.
To wrap up your appointment, you and your consultant will discuss and create a care plan that best supports your feeding goals. Keep in mind, care plans can change frequently, especially during the early days. Self-pay clients will be charged after the appointment to the credit card on file. An insurance claim will be submitted to your insurance company requesting reimbursement, if you provide insurance information on your intake form. If you are in-network with a participating insurance company Nurture will bill your insurance company on your behalf.
A follow-up appointment can be scheduled at the end of your consultation, if more in person support is required. Either way, your consultant will provide you a link to a secure messaging portal, so you are able to contact them with questions relevant to your current care plan. While you will receive a couple of follow up emails from us, we know having a new baby is overwhelming, so we do expect to hear from you if more help is needed or you have questions (we also love happy updates and fun baby pics when things are going well!).
**Please check out our blog post on COVID-19 Safety Precautions for details on temperature/symptom checking and mask wearing requirements.
How to prepare:
Do NOT Clean. You just had a baby. We know you normally don’t let your dishes pile up into a Mount Everest formation and typically you start your day with a clean shirt. Today is not the day to worry about these things. Do not clean or get out of your pajamas or brush your hair for us. Stay as you are. Trust us, we will feel better about you spending your valuable time feeding your baby and sleeping when you can!
Do have someone to help with older kids. We love kids! However, we want to make sure you get the most out of your appointment with us. If possible, it is helpful to meet when older kids are not home or to have a helper to keep them entertained during our visit.
Do put your pets outside, in their crate, or in a different room. Animals tend to be curious about us and our supplies or protective of you and baby. We are able to do our job best when furry friends are not in the room with us.
Do include your partner or support person in appointments, if you would like them to be with you. Often partners/supports have questions you may have forgotten or can remember tips and tricks for you!
Do plan to do your consultation where you feed most often. We can maximize your feeding potential (and your ability to replicate tips you learn) if we are using the chair, pillows, stools, etc, that you may normally use.
Do let us know of any special requests.This can include texting instead of knocking on the door when we arrive, parking instructions, any cultural or religious traditions we should be aware of, etc. We are here to serve you, please feel free to keep us in the loop on what works for your family and home.
Do consider checking with your insurance company to see if they cover Lactation Consultations.
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask. We want you to feel comfortable and strive for you to have the most positive experience possible as we support you and your baby on your feeding journey!
About the author: Julie Oberholzer is an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) with Nurture Columbus, in Columbus, Ohio. With her background in Public Health and Lactation, she enjoys meeting with parents and new babies, helping them on their feeding journey and supporting them as they find their new normal.