Christian Stephan-Otto, PhD

Dr Christian Stephan-Otto is a researcher at the Sant Joan de Déu Research Institute in Barcelona, Spain. He began his career in cosmology, completing a PhD in Physics at Tufts University, before transitioning into biomedicine. His work now focuses on neuroimaging research, with important contributions to understanding how biological and cognitive processes shape the brain across the lifespan.

Impact of breastfeeding duration on brain structure at 10 years of age

This presentation will discuss recent findings on how longer breastfeeding duration is associated with greater cortical gray matter volume in children, supporting a link between early nutrition and brain integrity during development.

1.00 L (VII) CERP

Rahmat Bibi Bagus, MBChB, IBCLC

Dr Rahmat Bagus is a mother to 4 children who all breastfed for extended periods of time. She is a medical doctor with an interest in paediatric primary care (having trained at Red Cross Children’s Hospital) and lactation. She established her own private practice called Kids Medicare in 2007 in Parow, Cape Town, South Africa. She is also an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant and extended her practice with “Breastfeeding Care” seeing challenging breastfeeding dyads. She volunteers with La Leche League South Africa, running breastfeeding support meetings and several WhatsApp groups for mothers. She serves as the Professional Liaison Leader for LLLSA, and serves on the Medical Advisory Team and Global Professional Leaders forum for LLL International. She is also a member of Lactation Consultants of Southern- & Africa.
She co-teaches a 30-hour online breastfeeding education course for healthcare workers in South Africa. “As a doctor I was dismayed to find out how little I knew about breastfeeding until I joined LLLSA. It’s sadly
a neglected area of medical training.”

Jean Ridler, RN, RM

Jean Ridler has been an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) for 35 years, and retired at the end of 2025. She is the mother of 2 children and grandmother of 4 – all breastfed.
Her varied career spans the private, public, and volunteer sectors, and includes roles as a WHO/UNICEF Trainer of Trainers and a BFHI Assessor. Since becoming an IBCLC in 1990, she has witnessed the exponential growth of lactation science and the transformative impact of the internet on maternal-infant support. She currently co-teaches a 30-hour online breastfeeding education course for healthcare workers in Southern Africa.
“While I’ve learned invaluable lessons from brilliant local and global colleagues, the most profound insights have always come directly from the amazing mothers and babies I’ve had the privilege to serve.”

Breastfeeding vs breastmilk feeding

Considering the well-documented health repercussions of not breastfeeding, several crucial questions arise: What are the ramifications of not feeding directly from the breasts? Is it unfair to mothers who believe they are “breastfeeding” when they are primarily breastmilk feeding? How do we address the fading traditions of direct breastfeeding?

1.50 L (I, V, VI, VII) CERP

Monét Kees, PhD, MPPA, IBCLC

Dr Monét Kees is a Perinatal Health Program Director, International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC), human lactation researcher, and full-spectrum doula dedicated to addressing disparities in perinatal health and human lactation. As a hospital-based and private practice lactation consultant, Dr Kees supports families from prenatal to postpartum, ensuring they receive comprehensive, culturally competent care. She has extensive experience in program design, implementation, and management, with a strong passion for educating and equipping communities.
Dr Kees’s professional journey began as a community organizer in public health, a role that shaped her commitment to advocating for public policies affecting vulnerable populations in Mississippi. Her career expanded to include roles in local government through the Cooperative Extension system in Mississippi, Indiana, and North Carolina, where she served limited-resource communities through outreach and education. Notably, Monét has been a vocal advocate for Black perinatal health and health equity, serving as a Maternal Health Coordinator for a public health firm and a Health Equity Manager for a local health department’s perinatal health program.
As a transformative advocate, practitioner, and scholar, she completed her doctoral degree in Instructional Systems and Workforce Development with research on the intersectionality of Black identity, human lactation, and lactation education. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences and a Master of Public Policy and Administration with a concentration in public health and health policy from Mississippi State University. Additionally, she earned a graduate certificate in Human Lactation from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. A proud Mississippi native, Dr Kees has made North Carolina her home, where she lives with her husband and two sons.

Pathways to progress: expanding access to the lactation profession

This presentation aims to identify and discuss the multifaceted barriers that underrepresented communities face in entering the lactation profession and propose comprehensive solutions to overcome these obstacles. By addressing financial, educational, cultural, social, and policy-related challenges, we can develop a more diverse and inclusive lactation workforce, ultimately improving lactation support for all populations.

0.75 L (V, VII) CERP

Johanna Sargeant, BA, BEd, IBCLC

Johanna Sargeant is an Australian IBCLC, writer and teacher based in Zurich, Switzerland. With extensive training in occupational therapy, education, biomedical science, and psychology, she empowers parents with empathetic support and accurate, personalised care through her private practice, Milk and Motherhood. In addition to working privately with clients, she recently co-created the new breastfeeding education modules for the European School of Neonatology, and travelled to Vienna to teach at the 10th Annual Congress of the European Academy of Paediatric Societies. She has taught at the University of Zurich, has spoken as a panellist for the WHO’s Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative congress, has been an expert speaker and facilitator for Google, and has presented at a wide variety of international conferences. Additionally, Johanna has gained her Perinatal Mental Health Certification (PMH-C) and is a Certified Trauma Support Specialist. Her complex personal and professional experiences fuel her passion for providing knowledgeable, guilt-free infant feeding support globally.

When our clients are stuck: tools to create achievable care plans and improve client success

Our work with clients involves so much more than simply an in-depth knowledge of lactation. Higher level counselling skills are imperative in allowing our clients to move forward with confidence. We may know exactly what is needed in order for them to achieve ‘lactation success’, but they don’t follow through in the way they had originally committed. Discover how the strong desire to inform, advise and fix client problems can significantly reduce positive outcomes, and how very specific tools can actively mobilize them towards their goal. Learn strategies you can immediately apply in consultations so parents feel deeply supported and motivated, feel ownership of their plan, and ultimately increase their likelihood of success.

1.00 L (V, VII) CERP

Shela Hirani, PhD, MScN, BScN, RN, IBCLC, FAAN

Dr Shela Hirani is a Professor at the University of Regina (Canada), Founding Director of the Breastfeeding Advocacy Research Lab, and Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing. She is a neonatal, maternal and child health expert, researcher, lactation consultant and an advocate of baby-friendly initiatives. Dr Hirani’s breastfeeding advocacy in Canada and beyond has promoted breastfeeding, dismantled breastfeeding barriers, led to a baby-friendly movement, and informed programs, policies and practices in diverse care settings, including hospitals, disaster zones, educational institutions, workplaces and public spaces. Her breastfeeding advocacy and impactful policy-shaping research has advanced health equity for marginalized mothers and infants, supporting over 166,000 families globally.
Based on her contributions, the World Health Organization recognized her as one of the 100 outstanding women nurses around the world in 2020. Dr Hirani received over 50 honors recognizing her work, including WXN Canada’s Most Powerful Women Top 100 Award Winner [in the Category of Community Impact], the King Charles III Coronation Medal from the Canadian Nurses Association, the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal from the Government of Saskatchewan, Multicultural Leadership Award from the Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan, YWCA Women of distinction award, and Sigma Nursing’s Emerging Researcher Award.
She is an elected board member of reputable international, national, and provincial organizations. She serves as an editorial board member of reputable global health journals. Dr Hirani’s breastfeeding advocacy efforts worldwide led to her appointment as a Board Member and Regional Director for the E Mediterranean Region for the Council of International Neonatal Nurses (COINN), Working Group Member on WHO’s Every Woman Every Newborn Everywhere (EWENE), and Core Group Member for Emergency Nutrition Network’s Infant Feeding in Emergencies (IFE). Through these representations, she is advocating for the rights and needs of breastfeeding mothers, which are informing equitable and inclusive breastfeeding policies and practices. Dr Hirani is also committed to providing quality mentorship to the next generation of leaders in breastfeeding advocacy.

Supporting breastfeeding practices of incarcerated mothers

Breastfeeding has many benefits for mothers and babies; however, mothers who have been incarcerated are less likely to breastfeed their babies. For incarcerated mothers, breastfeeding and the use of breast milk hold a particular significance in saving the lives of their young children. This presentation will discuss the breastfeeding barriers experienced by incarcerated women and present the recommended strategies to support breastfeeding in prison.

1.00 L (III, V, VI, VII) CERP