The MSBC Connecting the Dots meetings are a chance for people who work with new families to come together and share what's going on in their worlds and learn from each other.

Topics we often discuss are:

• What is happening legislatively that could impact our work?

• What else is going on in Maine that you’d like to share – one or two updates that the group can help you or others achieve, solve, or think about?

• What new research ideas are emerging?

• What challenges are you having in your work that colleagues could help you with?

Feedback from participants includes comments like:

“I always walk away feeling like a better human after attending these meetings!”

“I learned a lot about legislation and am grateful for the information.”

“I appreciate the opportunity to have open dialogue about new guidelines.”

Sign up for our newsletter or contact us for the Zoom meeting info.

Join us for this FREE webinar to learn more about expected feeding patterns and troubleshooting common challenges in the first weeks.

This webinar is designed to help providers:

1. Identify expected feeding patterns and volume transfer between days 3 and week 2

2. Understand how to assess and trouble shoot problems in the first few weeks

3. Describe next steps in supporting these families

Speaker:

Speaker: Paula Norcott, CLC, IBCLC. Co-Owner of Maine Mother and Company, a perinatal resource center in Brunswick Maine.

Paula is a lactation consultant with over 23 years experience serving feeding parents. Paula got her start in this work as a peer counselor for WIC in Plymouth Massachusetts in 1999. She worked in a fast paced hospital setting for 5 plus years. She currently works in private practice, in the infant feeding tech world and consults for both the state as well as a well known pump company. Frustrated by how nipple pain is brushed off and how slow infant gain is blamed on feeding parents, Paula has made it her mission to help these families feel confident in their plan and their ability to feed their tiny humans with a mental health first approach.

When not helping other families, Paula can be found at home, with her husband and at least a few of her five children, likely drinking GOOD chai, knitting and obsessing about when the next Percy Jackson episode will be released.

The MSBC Connecting the Dots meetings are a chance for people who work with new families to come together and share what's going on in their worlds and learn from each other.

Topics we often discuss are:

• What is happening legislatively that could impact our work?

• What else is going on in Maine that you’d like to share – one or two updates that the group can help you or others achieve, solve, or think about?

• What new research ideas are emerging?

• What challenges are you having in your work that colleagues could help you with?

Feedback from participants includes comments like:

“I always walk away feeling like a better human after attending these meetings!”

“I learned a lot about legislation and am grateful for the information.”

“I appreciate the opportunity to have open dialogue about new guidelines.”

Sign up for our newsletter or contact us for the Zoom meeting info.

Join us for this FREE webinar to learn more about the latest in breast pump technology!

Objectives:

This webinar is designed to help providers:

1. Analyze common breast pump terminology

2. Discuss and compare possible benefits of different breast pumps

3. Identify support necessary to improve pumping experiences for lactating individuals

Speaker:

Brittany Regan Fisher has worked in the health and wellness field for over 8 years with a focus on education as well as birth and lactation support. She has worked as a birth and postpartum doula, a HypnoBirthing® practitioner, and a CPST.

Brittany is currently on the board of the Massachusetts Breastfeeding Coalition and is the National Director of ZipMilk, a project of the Coalition. She is also the Regional Account Manager at Acelleron, a local DME. 

The MSBC Connecting the Dots meetings are a chance for people who work with new families to come together and share what's going on in their worlds and learn from each other.

Topics we often discuss are:

• What is happening legislatively that could impact our work?

• What else is going on in Maine that you’d like to share – one or two updates that the group can help you or others achieve, solve, or think about?

• What new research ideas are emerging?

• What challenges are you having in your work that colleagues could help you with?

Feedback from participants includes comments like:

“I always walk away feeling like a better human after attending these meetings!”

“I learned a lot about legislation and am grateful for the information.”

“I appreciate the opportunity to have open dialogue about new guidelines.”

Sign up for our newsletter or contact us for the Zoom meeting info.

Join us for this FREE webinar to learn more about pasteurized donor human milk in Maine.

Objectives:

1. Outline safety standards in donor milk banking.

2. List reasons why an infant might be offered supplementation with Pasteurized Donor Human Milk (PDHM) in hospital or at home.

3. Explain how families can access donor milk in hospital and at home.

4. Recall where to go to find out more about MaineCare and private insurance coverage for donor human milk in the state.

Speaker:

Kylia Garver is Director of Hospital Relations and Community Education at Mothers' Milk Bank Northeast. She earned her Master of Public Health Degree at Boston University with a concentration in Maternal Child Health. In her role at the milk bank, Kylia builds partnerships with a wide range of medical personnel, conducts educational trainings and supports families and clinical staff who have questions about donor milk. Kylia has three children of her own, now well beyond their breastfeeding years, but she continues to be passionate about supporting families particularly during postpartum.

The MSBC Connecting the Dots meetings are a chance for people who work with new families to come together and share what's going on in their worlds and learn from each other.

Topics we often discuss are:

• What is happening legislatively that could impact our work?

• What else is going on in Maine that you’d like to share – one or two updates that the group can help you or others achieve, solve, or think about?

• What new research ideas are emerging?

• What challenges are you having in your work that colleagues could help you with?

Feedback from participants includes comments like:

“I always walk away feeling like a better human after attending these meetings!”

“I learned a lot about legislation and am grateful for the information.”

“I appreciate the opportunity to have open dialogue about new guidelines.”

Sign up for our newsletter or contact us for the Zoom meeting info.

Summary:

This webinar will review some of the common feeding struggles in early infancy from the clinical perspectives of a pediatric gastroenterologist and speech language pathologist. We will review reflux, food allergies vs. intolerances, and common challenges with breast and bottle feeding.

Objectives:

1. Learn to troubleshoot feeding challenges in the first 6 months of life

   • Reflux and when to worry

   • Intolerances and when to eliminate

   • Difficulty with breast or bottle feeding from an SLP perspective

2. Obtain additional resources to help manage some conditions and educate families

Speakers:

Julia Fritz, MD is a Pediatric Gastroenterologist at Maine Medical Partners and the Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital. She graduated from Mount Sinai School of Medicine (now Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai) in 2011 before completing her pediatric residency at Maine Medical Center. She then moved to Milwaukee, WI to complete her fellowship training in GI at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin before returning to MMC in 2017. She is a clinical assistant professor of pediatrics at Tufts University School of Medicine and the rotation director and inpatient service director for pediatric gastroenterology at BBCH. In addition to her clinical work and role in medical education, she is active in advocacy, serving on the North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition committee of Public Affairs and Advocacy.

Virginia Weill, M.Ed., CCC-SLP holds a Master of Education degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders from the University of Virginia. She is a Speech-Language Pathologist and Clinical Specialist with 13 years of experience in pediatrics. She primarily works at Maine Medical Center, and per diem at MaineHealth Care at Home-Cumberland and The Maine Chatterbox. She specializes in neonatal and pediatric Feeding and Swallowing Disorders, the aerodigestive and cardiac population, and conducts neonatal and pediatric swallow studies (MBS/VFSS and FEES).

The MSBC Connecting the Dots meetings are a chance for people who work with new families to come together and share what's going on in their worlds and learn from each other.

Topics we often discuss are:

• What is happening legislatively that could impact our work?

• What else is going on in Maine that you’d like to share – one or two updates that the group can help you or others achieve, solve, or think about?

• What new research ideas are emerging?

• What challenges are you having in your work that colleagues could help you with?

Feedback from participants includes comments like:

“I always walk away feeling like a better human after attending these meetings!”

“I learned a lot about legislation and am grateful for the information.”

“I appreciate the opportunity to have open dialogue about new guidelines.”

Sign up for our newsletter or contact us for the Zoom meeting info.

Join us for this informative webinar to learn more about the importance of human milk and the microbiome.

Objectives:

1. Brief overview: what is the microbiome, and why does it matter?

2. Factors that affect the maternal and child microbiome; how do human milk and feeding fit in?

3. The microbiome’s effect on disease and other outcomes in children.

Presenter: Dr. Jessica Rosenthal

Jessica currently practices as a primary care pediatrician at Maine Medical Partners South Portland Pediatrics. She completed medical school at the University of Rochester in 2009 and pediatrics residency at Massachusetts General Hospital in 2012.

She is the breastfeeding champion for her practice and has a passion for supporting families in their breastfeeding journeys. She helped create and facilitate a breastfeeding peer support group at her previous practice in Massachusetts. Outside of work, she loves spending time with her husband and two children.

If you are not on our mailing list, please join here to receive info about upcoming webinars and meetings.

Join us for our storytelling event: Patchwork of Parenthood! Hear from 6 different speakers about their parenting journeys.

FMI: www.mainebreastfeeds.org/pop2023

This meeting will be the MSBC’ Annual Meeting. It will include a presentation from the Board President followed by a community discussion, much like the bimonthly Connecting the Dots meetings. This is another chance for people who work with new families to come together and share what's going on in their worlds and learn from each other.

Topics we often discuss are:

• What is happening legislatively that could impact our work?

• What else is going on in Maine that you’d like to share – one or two updates that the group can help you or others achieve, solve, or think about?

• What new research ideas are emerging?

• What challenges are you having in your work that colleagues could help you with?

Feedback from participants includes comments like:

“I always walk away feeling like a better human after attending these meetings!”

“I learned a lot about legislation and am grateful for the information.”

“I appreciate the opportunity to have open dialogue about new guidelines.”

Sign up for our newsletter or contact us for the Zoom meeting info.

In this webinar, Attorney Tozier will present on the importance of breastmilk for children and how workplace policies, practices and stigmas can potentially support and/or interfere with a parent's ability to provide children what they need. She will discuss what the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Affordable Care Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, the PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act, and the Maine Human Rights Act all have to say about this issue, what current-day challenges look like, and what solutions may be to allow more parents in America to freely express milk at work without issue. (This will be a great opportunity to learn all about the new PUMP Act, and how to feel more confident speaking to families about their rights.)

Presenter: Ali Tozier, Employment Attorney

Attorney Ali Tozier specializes in employment law. She has helped both employers and employees navigate workplace laws and challenges for about eight years. She focuses on conflict resolution and effective communication. She grew up in Falmouth, Maine and graduated from Williams College in 2009. She lived and worked in various places, including London, before returning to her roots. She graduated from Maine Law in 2015, where she became enchanted with employment law during an internship at the Maine Human Rights Commission. Attorney Tozier has practiced in Portland ever since, and she will be joining the Bennett Law Firm on April 1, 2023. Attorney Tozier has been named a Super Lawyer's "Rising Star" six years in a row, was appointed by the governor to Maine's Board of Bar Examiners to help safeguard the legal profession in 2018, is an American Bar Foundation Fellow, a former District Representative in the American Bar Association and Chair of the Maine State Bar Association's New Lawyer's Section, has a leadership role in two local organizations that encourage diversity and inclusion in Maine, and is a member of the Maine State Breastfeeding Coalition. Attorney Tozier's mother, Pam Tozier, is one of the state's leading lactation consultants. She has inspired her daughter to help workplaces become more accommodating to the needs of nursing parents. Attorney Tozier lives in Portland with her dog and enjoys salsa dancing, being in the mountains of New Hampshire, and spending time on Bustins Island in Casco Bay - where her family has lived every summer since the 1930s.

The MSBC Connecting the Dots meetings are a chance for people who work with new families to come together and share what's going on in their worlds and learn from each other.

Topics we often discuss are:

• What is happening legislatively that could impact our work?

• What else is going on in Maine that you’d like to share – one or two updates that the group can help you or others achieve, solve, or think about?

• What new research ideas are emerging?

• What challenges are you having in your work that colleagues could help you with?

Feedback from participants includes comments like:

“I always walk away feeling like a better human after attending these meetings!”

“I learned a lot about legislation and am grateful for the information.”

“I appreciate the opportunity to have open dialogue about new guidelines.”

Sign up for our newsletter or contact us for the Zoom meeting info.

Speaker: Petrichor Kneeland-Campbell

Learning objectives:

1. Participants will develop a basic understanding of the meaning of each letter of DEIJB (diversity, equity, inclusion, justice, and belonging).

2. Participants will understand how DEIJB relates to lactation and birth care.

3. Participants will learn more about the MSBC DEIJB statement and where to find resources.

Contact us for login info!

The MSBC Connecting the Dots meetings are a chance for people who work with new families to come together and share what's going on in their worlds and learn from each other.

Topics we often discuss are:

• What is happening legislatively that could impact our work?

• What else is going on in Maine that you’d like to share – one or two updates that the group can help you or others achieve, solve, or think about?

• What new research ideas are emerging?

• What challenges are you having in your work that colleagues could help you with?

Feedback from participants includes comments like:

“I always walk away feeling like a better human after attending these meetings!”

“I learned a lot about legislation and am grateful for the information.”

“I appreciate the opportunity to have open dialogue about new guidelines.”

Sign up for our newsletter or contact us for the Zoom meeting info.