Bilingual (Spanish/English) WIC Breastfeeding Peer Counselor

About the role

Washington County Public Health Division is seeking a Bilingual (Spanish/English) Breastfeeding Peer Counselor to join our Women, Infants & Children (WIC) Program. In this role, you will provide parent-to-parent support to prenatal and postpartum WIC parents by providing basic breastfeeding information and encouragement. You will counsel prenatal and postpartum participants both virtually and face-to-face and refer participants to the Breastfeeding Peer Counseling Coordinator/International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) or other designated staff, or other appropriate health or social service agency, including outside community breastfeeding resources, for situations outside the peer counselor’s scope of practice. You will also support participants outside of usual clinic hours and the WIC clinic environment. The WIC program focuses on nutrition education, breastfeeding support, health and diet screening, growth monitoring, and program referrals for pregnant, breastfeeding, and postpartum women, infants, and children up to 5 years of age. WIC serves families from various cultural and ethnic traditions, languages, backgrounds, and abilities. It is designed to promote positive health outcomes, strengthen life course nutrition and health, and reduce the differences in health outcomes and access of the populations we serve.

Responsibilities

• Provide parent-to-parent support to prenatal and postpartum WIC participants.
• Offer basic breastfeeding information and encouragement.
• Counsel participants virtually and face-to-face.
• Refer participants to the Breastfeeding Peer Counseling Coordinator/IBCLC or other designated staff, health or social service agencies, or community breastfeeding resources when issues are outside the peer counselor’s scope.
• Support participants outside of usual clinic hours and outside the WIC clinic environment.

Requirements

• High school diploma or equivalent.
• Meet WIC Policy 716 and USDA program requirements.
• Pass written and oral Spanish fluency assessments.
• Successfully pass a background check post‑offer.
• Be a paraprofessional (not licensed or credentialed as a healthcare, nutrition, or lactation consultant professional such as IBCLC, registered dietitian, nurse, etc.).
• Credentials as Community Healthcare Worker (CHW), Certified Lactation Educator (CLE), Certified Lactation Counselor (CLC), or doula are eligible.
• Have experience breastfeeding at least one baby for six months or longer.

Qualifications

Work or volunteer experience related to public services, customer support, connection to community resources, or peer support may be considered towards salary placement.

Skills

• Ability to advocate for various communities in Washington County, Clackamas County, Tillamook County, Columbia County and Polk County.
• Familiarity of WIC services or, preferably, current/previous WIC participant experience.
• Skills to communicate and share information using digital platforms and in‑person.
• Knowledge of or ability to navigate community systems of support, such as healthcare, community referrals, language/community‑based resources, social media groups, etc.
• Skills to provide emotional support during challenging or difficult times.
• Time management and organizational skills to document meeting notes, manage workload and deadlines, and prioritize tasks.