24 | Creating Safe Spaces for You and Your Clients During Lactation Home Visits

When a family reaches out to you for a home visit to help them with breastfeeding/chestfeeding or other lactation-related concerns, it’s natural to want to take some precautions to protect your own safety in an unfamiliar situation with someone you’ve never met before. Our clients also need to feel safe with us because if they don’t trust us, we can’t help them. You are coming to them at a raw and vulnerable time and you want to come across as someone who is understanding and accepting of them without judgment. At the same time, you should communicate your expectations ahead of time about the visit and have a plan in place to alert someone if you ever feel unsafe.“I felt from the very beginning that it was important for me to set some expectations for both sides.” In this episode, we will cover:Your intake process is a great way to set expectations from the startConsider sharing your location with your spouse, partner, or other trusted friend so someone always knows where you areHave procedures in place for physical safety and digital privacyKnow when and how to refer out if anyone in the family is unsafeDo work ahead of time on your own biasesBe cautious in your use of social media This episode is sponsored by IntakeQ. Use IntakeQ to collect client information for the superbill, even if they are out of network. IntakeQ is offering Lactation Business Coaching podcast listeners a discount on their first 3 months using the service at this link.  Links and ResourcesLactation Business Coaching websiteLactation Business Coaching FacebookSubscribe to the Deeper Dive Membership: https://learn.paperlesslactation.com/subscription/deeper-dive-membershipHave an idea for a podcast episode or a Deeper Dive? Let us know! https://learn.paperlesslactation.com/form/collaborate If you like what you heard today, please follow us on Facebook and Instagram and leave us a review on iTunes.  About UsLeah Jolly is a private practice IBCLC with Bay Area Breastfeeding in Houston, Texas.Annie Frisbie is a private practice IBCLC serving Queens and Brooklyn in New York City and the creator of the Lactation Consultant Private Practice Toolkit.Many thanks to Stephanie Granade for her production assistance, and to Silas Wade for creating our theme music. Thanks to our monthly supporters Emily Maize Tiffany Gillies Katherine Leigh Heister Katherine Leigh Heister Gina Pepe Gina Pepe Sara Huddleston Sara Huddleston Allison Walsh Allison Walsh Rebecca Leese Rebecca Leese Celia Clark-Randall Celia Clark-Randall Chanelle Andrews Denise McDonald Denise McDonald Nurse Nikki Nurse Nikki Mary Muse JOC Team JOC Team Heather Bell Heather Bell Nicole Letizia Nicole Letizia Cathleen Walker Sarah Shapiro, IBCLC Sarah Shapiro, IBCLC Lisa Meyer-Jones Lisa Meyer-Jones Theresa Hardy Heather Martin Heather Martin Susan Johnson Susan Johnson Maggie Rezende Maggie Rezende Elizabeth Stapleton Elizabeth Stapleton Heather Mastro Heather Mastro Melanie Tarr Melanie Tarr Molly McMillion Molly McMillion Morenike Tyehimba Morenike Tyehimba Margot Hodes Margot Hodes Denise McDonald Denise McDonald Audrey Thompson Audrey Thompson Beth Brownstein Beth Brownstein Zee Ifan Zee Ifan Maria o Sullivan ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★