Online Help Forms and the New Leader
Heather Voccola
From: LEAVEN, Vol. 34 No. 6, December 1998 - January 1999, p. 120
New technology has given
us the computer and now the option of helping breastfeeding mothers
online. Although some feel that the computer is an impersonal medium,
others feel it is the anonymity they need in order to feel comfortable.
Offering accurate information and support online is just another way
we achieve our mission of helping mothers breastfeed.
A great way for new Leaders-those
who have online access-to start their helping careers fast is to begin
answering online Help Forms. The advantages are many.
First, a new Leader concerned
about giving the most accurate information possible has time to research
questions when helping online. Our current deadline for Help Form replies
is one week. This allows a new Leader time to gather all of the information
and determine how best to present it to the mother.
Help Form situations also
allow a new Leader the chance to share her assessment of the situation
with other, more experienced Leaders. A Leader can contact another local
Leader or PL Leader or she might use The Leader Connection (TLC), a
non-LLL-endorsed, private email list of Leaders around the world. This
collective expertise can be used along with a Leader's research.
Helping online also allows
a new Leader time to collect her thoughts and be as objective as possible
before responding, something that might not be as smooth and polished
as she would like those first few phone calls.
Answering Help Forms can
also be a great confidence builder. A new Leader is able to begin helping
mothers immediately, rather than waiting for the phone to ring. Unlike
phone calls, however, a Leader can determine her availability. She can
choose the number of forms she would like to handle a week, even every
two or three weeks, and the best time to receive them.
With more than 30 Help Forms
received from mothers a day there is a big demand for volunteers, especially
outside the United States. Mothers are matched whenever possible with
Leaders from their own country.
All Help Form volunteers
need to check with their District Advisor/Coordinator (DA/DC) or Area
Coordinator of Leaders (ACL) for current online Leader guidelines. Some
Areas use a form to keep track of Help Form activity, others require
Leaders to keep an online Leaders Log. Leaders in Affiliates should
check with their support Leader before volunteering.
The LLLI Online Council supports
online Leaders in several ways. An online Leader with access to Area/Affiliate
Directories can supply Leaders with local LLL contacts for mothers.
In addition, a network of Online Professional Liaison Leaders (OPLs)
is available to help Leaders with resources and approaches to challenging
Help Form questions.
One of the greatest advantages
to being a Help Form volunteer is that the work of LLL can be seen internationally.
A Leader in one part of the world can help a mother in another part.
Our world becomes a much smaller place when mother-to-mother breastfeeding
help reaches around the world.
Contact the LLLI Web site team
for information about volunteering for Help Forms [revised 10/03/06]
Page last edited Sun Oct 14 09:32:02 UTC 2007.
