The LATCH Project

Lactation Access Transforming Communities in Hawai'i

Connecting breast/chestfeeding communities with public and private partners,  LATCH efforts are jointly led by Breastfeeding Hawaiʻi and Early Childhood Action Strategy.

Waiū: First Food, First Medicine

LATCH works to increase access to breast/ chestfeeding support to address health disparities and strengthen community food sovereignty throughout Hawaiʻi.

Elevating Community Voice in Institutional Policy Making

LATCH fosters collaboration between insurers, providers, MedQuest, legislators, and nursing parents to address critical gaps in lactation support statewide.

Listening to Communities

LATCH engages throughout ka Pae ʻĀina o Hawaiʻi to elevate community voice in efforts to secure funded lactation support for families.

Fostering Innovative Collaboration for Lasting Change

LATCH strives to bring together unlikely partners to craft creative solutions to longstanding challenges facing nursing families.

The Leadership Team

The LATCH Leadership Team works to expand access to quality lactation care across Hawai‘i by partnering with providers statewide. With expertise in public health, early childhood development, advocacy, and policy, they create strategies that connect families to vital resources.

  • The LATCH Leadership Team is committed to creating stronger partnerships with the community of lactation support providers in Hawai'i with the goal of increasing access to lactation support throughout the State. With expertise in public health, early childhood development, advocacy, and policy-making, they lead innovative strategies to bridge the gap between families and providers. The LATCH leadership team is committed to ensuring every lactating individual's thriving future, supported by an inclusive network of resources and services.

  • The LATCH Leadership Team is dedicated to strengthening partnerships with lactation support providers across Hawai‘i to expand access to quality lactation care statewide. Combining expertise in public health, early childhood development, advocacy, and policy, they develop innovative strategies that connect families with vital resources and services.

    Guided by the Breastfeeding Hawai‘i Board of Directors and supported by Early Childhood Action Strategy, the team works collaboratively with local partners to ensure every lactating individual thrives within an inclusive and supportive network.

Partnerships

LATCH works closely with Hawaiʻi partners to elevate the voices of families and providers throughout our island communities.

The LATCH Project (Lactation Access Transforming Communities in Hawaiʻi) is funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to elevate community voice and foster collaboration between insurers, providers, MedQuest, and nursing parents as Hawai'i works to address critical gaps in lactation support statewide. As a part of Community Solutions for Health Equity, LATCH is one of 11 projects supported by Community Catalyst and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation "to make local health systems more responsive and accountable to the needs of the communities they serve."

Breastfeeding Hawaiʻi works to protect, promote and support breastfeeding through the education of and collaboration with professionals involved in maternal-child health, and serve as a community breastfeeding advocate in the State of Hawaii.

Early Childhood Action Strategy (ECAS) brings together government and non-governmental organizations to align priorities for children from prenatal to age eight and to strengthen and integrate the early childhood system by streamlining services, maximizing resources, and improving programs to support our youngest keiki.

We collaborate with Hawai‘i’s Med-QUEST and HMSA QUEST programs, as well as the HMSA PAPPS program, to expand access to quality lactation care. Through these partnerships, families can connect with trusted providers, receive timely breastfeeding support, and benefit from initiatives that prioritize maternal and infant health across the islands.

LATCH seeks partners throughout our islands to share your ʻike. Contact us to join the conversation.

Enroll in No-Cost Lactation Support

The Fast Pass Pilot aims to demonstrate the significant benefits of well-timed no-cost clinical lactation care for parents experiencing breastfeeding challenges. This demonstration project offers HMSA Medquest participants on neighbor islands a "Fast Pass" for two no-cost lactation visits with a participating IBCLC.

Reserve your spot now—space is limited!

    • Families with HMSA Quest

    • Resident of Hawaii Island, Maui, Moloka'i, Lana'i, or Kaua'i

    • Experiencing a current Breast/ Chest Feeding difficulty

    • Two (2) no-cost lactation support visits with participating IBCLC providers in your area.

    • Visits may be Home visits, in-office, or virtual with a participating International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC)

    View Participating Partners

  • Complete our online inquiry form below, space is limited!

  • Spreading our ‘Ike

    Going to the places that matter and making time to join together in places and activities that hold special meaning:

    Tending, harvesting, or preparing food or plant medicine

    Making lei or other meaningful handicrafts together

    Honoring ancestral lands

    Check out our event schedule to join us!

  • Showing up where our communities show up

    Rather than inviting community members to come to us for focus groups, we look for opportunities to connect where communities gather together:

    Training for birth workers on Maui

    Physicians’ conference on Kauaʻi

    WIC Leadership Meeting over Zoom

    Let us know where we should show up in your community.

Contact us