GEORGIA WIC PROGRAM PROCEDURES MANUAL NS Staff Continuing Education Policy No. NS- 220.03 Effective Date: October 1, 2016

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Policy All WIC Competent Professional Authority (CPA), Breastfeeding Peer Counselor (BPC), International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC), Nutrition Assistant (NA) and other breastfeeding staff providing WIC services, whether they work full time or part time, must receive at least twelve (12) hours of nutrition specific continuing education each year. Required WIC programmatic in-service trainings do not count towards the required twelve (12) hours, unless approved by the Office of Program Operations and Nutrition. Purpose To ensure local agency (LA) staff is trained to promote accurate health, nutrition and breastfeeding information. Procedures I. Local Agency shall provide or allow access to continuing education through district developed training activities, or via webinars, self-study modules or conferences.

II. Local Agency staff can count the required two (2) hours of Breastfeeding specific continuing education and Value Enhanced Nutrition Assessment/Participant Centered Education (VENA/PCE) skills development training as part of the twelve (12) hours of nutrition specific continuing education. See Staff Training Policy.

III. Local Agencies may prorate continuing education for employees who are employed for a partial year (e.g. new hire or terminated employee) and in special situations (e.g. family and/or medical leave). IV. Local Agencies must document mandatory training and continuing education on the Continuing Education Documentation Log.

A. All CPAs, NAs, IBCLCs, BFPC (and, other staff providing anthropometric and biochemical services) must be listed in the log on the appropriate tab by position held. Staff holding multiple positions should only be listed once under the position with the highest level of requirements.

B. The log must be tracked by Federal Fiscal Year. If changing tracking year, two logs must be kept until the transition to the new tracking year is complete.

C. Certificates of attendance or other documentation evidencing the actual attendance represented in the log must be maintained for five (5) years plus the current year.

GEORGIA WIC PROGRAM PROCEDURES MANUAL NS Staff Continuing Education Policy No. NS- 220.03 Effective Date: October 1, 2016

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Authority Georgia WIC Program Policy

Definitions/Supporting Information Breastfeeding Peer Counselor: (BPC) - A WIC Breastfeeding Peer Counselor is a paraprofessional support person who gives basic breastfeeding information and encouragement to WIC pregnant and breastfeeding mothers. CEUs - Continuing education units are a system of tracking the amount of time spent in training. One hour is equivalent to one continuing education unit. Competent Professional Authority (CPA) – An individual on the local agency staff who is authorized to determine nutritional risk and prescribe supplemental foods. The following individuals may be authorized and trained to serve as a CPA: physicians, nutritionists (bachelor’s or master’s degree in Nutritional Sciences, Community Nutrition, Clinical Nutrition, Dietetics, Public Health Nutrition), registered dietitians, licensed dietitians, registered nurses, and physician assistants (certified by the National Committee on certification of Physicians Assistants or certified by the State medical certifying authority), or State or local medically trained health officials. FTE – Full time equivalent is the hours worked by one employee working full time (forty hours per week). International Board Certified Lactation Consultants (IBCLC) - An IBCLC is a health care professional who specializes in the clinical management of breastfeeding. IBCLCs are certified by the International Board of Lactation Consultant Examiners under the direction of the US National Commission for Certifying Agencies. Certification is awarded upon completion of extensive clinical experience with breastfeeding mothers, educational credits in lactation, and a passing score on the lactation consultants' examination. IBCLCs must re-certify by acquiring continuing education recognition points over five years and must retake the certification examination after 10 years. Nutrition Assistant (NA) – An individual on the local agency staff who has been authorized to provide general nutrition education within a limited scope of practice. NA must only provide education that they have specifically been trained to provide. Lesson plans or evidence of training related to the content must be available for review by the State Agency for all low-risk nutrition education an NA provides.