Becoming A Peer Counselor
Peer Counselor Program
Becoming a Peer Counselor
Are you passionate about breastfeeding and working with familes? Become a WIC Peer Counselor for your community. Find out the details below.
What Do Peer Counselors Do?
Serve as Role Models
If you have breastfed your baby, you can use your experiences, when talking to WIC mothers. Your guidance to these mothers will help with increasing breastfeeding intitiation and duration rates in the State of New Mexico.
Provide Breastfeeding Couseling
You will focus on helping WIC clients breastfed successfully by providing virtual, telephone, or in person one-to-one counseling. You will keep accurate and complete documentation of all contacts made with WIC clients in the PC Program Google Workspace, which follows HIPPA requirements to keep client information confidential.
Receive Training
Peer counselors have more than personal experience. You will take a 20-hour training course that includes breastfeeding basics, counseling skills, and additional resources to provide to WIC clients. These trainings will help guide you to give evidence-based breastfeeding information and support to your clients.
Provide Resources
Peer Counselors are trained to help with basic breastfeeding needs. If you, identify a high risk breastfeeding concern you may refer the WIC client to a lactation consultant, designated breastfeeding expert (DBE), or other health care professional.
Become a WIC Peer Counselor!
You Must
Have been or are currently a WIC client
Have breastfed or are breastfeeding a baby
Be a paraprofessional: WIC Peer Counselors cannot hold licenses or certifications related to lactation or any health fields (such as a CLC, childbirth education, doula, CNA, RN, Medical Assistant, ect.) or be practicing as an uncertified doula, childbirth educator, midwife, or lactation professional.
Peer Counselors Receive
Paid training
Flexible hours
Scheduling when you are available
Educational opportunities
Contact your local WIC office to see if they are seeking peer counselors in your area.