Fixing Our Broken Baby Feeding System with @simplifedbaby Andrea Ippolito

Katie Ferraro (0s):

.I've realized when it comes to cooking, I don't mind cooking, but I really don't like picking out like the recipe or what it is that I have to cook. When I was younger and I didn't have kids, I had more leisure time and downtime. I love nothing more than like browsing, cooking and recipe magazines. And my husband Charlie actually used to get mad at me 'cause I would bring my Bon Appetit magazines to the Padres baseball game and read recipes instead of paying attention to baseball with him. But now that I have to cook every day for kids and work, I just kind of like when it's all laid out for me. So right now I'm following my own hundred First Foods daily meal plan. I'm making five new foods from that meal plan each week for my friend's baby Ezra. So he's doing baby-led weenie and our hundred First Foods program and every Saturday I order or buy the groceries.

Katie Ferraro (41s):

Then I spend part of Sunday prepping the food for him and for my family for the whole week and then I basically don't have to think about what it is that we're going to eat all week 'cause it's already done, which I love. So we're heading into week 11 for baby Ezra. So that's gonna be foods number 51 to 55 for him. So we're more than halfway there to the hundred First Foods. And I wanna share the five new foods that I'm making for Ezra this week. 'cause I was just working on the shopping list inside of the baby-led weaning with Katie Ferraro program. I have this whole hundred First Foods daily meal plan. It has the shopping list for each week. It has the weekly menu, has the daily recipes. Again, it's all laid out for you so you don't have to use that part of your brain. I did it for you. Monday of every week we do a new fruit.

Katie Ferraro (1m 22s):

So this week it's Orange. Tuesday we do a new vegetable, we're doing artichokes. I'm gonna make the artichokes the old fashioned way. And then also show the family a really easy way to use canned artichokes, which is much faster. Wednesday, we do a new starchy food. So we're gonna do the whole grain called millet. Thursday is a new protein food. We're running through a lot of the plant protein foods now that we've done all the meat. So we're gonna be doing pinto beans, and then Friday, we do a new allergenic food and it's going to be white fish. So we've already done all of the allergenic foods, we've done fatty fish, but I want to show and I show in the program how to make white fish safe for baby-led weaning. So if you wanna follow the same hundred First Foods daily meal plan that we're doing, it's all part of my baby-led weaning with Katie Ferraro program.

Katie Ferraro (2m 2s):

I've got the exact sequence of foods to feed as well as my hundred First Foods content library with all the instructions, videos, recipes. So you can learn how to safely prepare each of the FOODS from my hundred First Foods list. 'cause I want your baby to eat a hundred FOODS before they turn one. And you can follow this exact meal plan and save that part of your brain so you don't have to pick out the FOODS. I did it all for you. You can try all these new FOODS too when you sign up at baby-led weaning.co/program. Again, that's babyledweaning.co/program and I hope to see you there. Do babies need to eat bland food? Heck no. Seasoning your baby's food is a great way to introduce new flavors. We just wanna steer clear of added sugars, excess salt or anything super spicy that could be harmful to your Babies.

Katie Ferraro (2m 43s):

So when I'm cooking FOODS for babies, I love to use the salt free seasonings from the Spice House. The Spice House has been around since 1957 and they sell the finest spices, herbs, blends and extracts to customers that range from Michelin star chefs to brand new moms. Spice House has this salt-free spices deluxe gift set. It's my go-to for seasoning Foods that your baby can eat. And right now you can get 10% off everything at thespicehouse.com with my brand new affiliate discount code BLWT. So if you have no idea how to season food, check out their essential Spices collection. But don't pass on that salt free line. It's awesome.

Katie Ferraro (3m 23s):

The code again BLWT for 15% off at thespicehouse.com. And don't be shy about seasoning your baby's food.

Andrea Ippolito (3m 31s):

This like blew my mind as a first time parent that you know, under the Affordable Care Act, commercial health plans and health plans in Medicaid expansion states, which by the way is in 40 outta 50 states. So the vast majority of states husbands are required to cover Breastfeeding and baby Feeding support starting during pregnancy to do prenatal education. So you know what to expect. So nothing's a surprise at no cost to you.

Katie Ferraro (3m 57s):

Hey there. I'm Katie Ferraro, Registered Dietitian, college nutrition professor and mom of seven specializing in baby-led weaning Here on the Baby-Led Weaning Made Easy podcast I help you strip out all of the noise and nonsense about feeding, leading you with the confidence and knowledge you need to give your baby a safe start to solid foods using baby-led weaning. Before you had your first baby, what sort of breastfeeding support did you receive? I feel like there was a list of things to check off. Like did I do my CPR class? Yes, I remember going to the breastfeeding class with a sister-in-law of mine who was pregnant at the same time and there was like dolls and we were both just terrified of the whole having the baby part.

Katie Ferraro (4m 40s):

I remember not really focusing on like, oh how am I actually going to feed this baby once it's here? And my guest today, Andrea Ippolito recognizes that most moms don't get breastfeeding or lactation or feeding support from before they're pregnant. Right after they're pregnant and continuing on to when they have the baby. But she's also aware that it's actually part of the Affordable Care Act that lactation and Breastfeeding support is mandated and yet in the majority of states in the United States it's not being provided. So she founded a company that's called Simpli Fed. So this is a company founded in 2019. Andrea has a biomedical engineering background. She's a mom of three babies. At the time of our recording, she actually was 12 weeks postpartum with her third baby.

Katie Ferraro (5m 25s):

So she like had her pums there and she like when we were doing the interview she's like, I have to finish 'cause I have to go pump and like totally amazing Supermom like running this business. And what Simpli Fed does just in a nutshell, it's a telehealth platform and its goal is to democratize access to baby feeding and breastfeeding services. So what Simpli Fed's mission is is they wanna create a new model for optimal baby feeding by building trusted relationships with parents. She partners with healthcare payers and providers and she's gonna talk about insured moms and how they can access these service as well as Medicaid beneficiaries and people who do not have insurance. And her goal is to ultimately shift policy practice and narratives in order to improve mom's experience. So she's gonna share a lot about her personal struggles with Breastfeeding and Feeding Babies as well as what her and her company Simpli Fed are doing to help fix what she considers to be a broken baby feeding system.

Katie Ferraro (6m 15s):

So with no further ado, here is Andrea Ippolito from Simpli Fed.

Andrea Ippolito (6m 22s):

Oh so excited to be here. Thanks for having me.

Katie Ferraro (6m 25s):

I am really looking forward to learning about what Simpli Fed is doing and how you guys are working to help fix our broken baby feeding system. Like the first time I heard you say that I was like yes, but before we start, I know you have baby number three here now 12 weeks old. How is it going feeding your baby so far? if you don't mind sharing And then just what's different your third time around with baby number three?

Andrea Ippolito (6m 45s):

Well thanks so much for the opportunity to share this story because it is just a world of difference since my first kid, my first kid, her name is May, I have three daughters and I had no idea what to expect with baby feeding and, and honestly I wasn't even preparing or thinking about baby feeding. I was so focused on the birth like a lot of parents And then all of a sudden like they hand you this kiddo and the first thing you have to do while by the way you're recovering from birth is feed it. And I was like, what? I was just not tracking that at all. And my first daughter May was born early underweight, she, you know, not tremendously early 37 weeks but she was born at five pounds and then 'cause I honestly like wasn't making enough.

Andrea Ippolito (7m 31s):

And by the way, that was another thing I've recently learned my third kiddo that your milk doesn't come in for a few days but because I wasn't producing enough, she continued to drop weight down to four pounds. And honestly I was devastated. I was just, I felt like a failure. We started using formula and you know I felt judged for that and a lot of that was real but some of that was also in my head and perception and no matter what I felt terrible and I you shouldn't feel terrible. And you know, over time I learned about this amazing baby feeding specialist called a lactation consultant that by the way are the experts no matter how you feed your baby formula, Feeding, breastfeeding, pumping, whatever that looks like.

Andrea Ippolito (8m 14s):

And I learned that they're supposed to be covered by insurance. But long story short, because my third kid I've started Simpli Fed and have just such great access to insurance, covered lactation support from our specialist, it's going tremendously well. My kiddo was ahead of the growth curve. I feel confident when I had issues, I had pain a lot with Breastfeeding the first week I was able to get support and work with a professional so that I wasn't paying. 'cause feeding shouldn't be pain painful. I'm now fully Breastfeeding my kiddo though just started daycare and and so we're doing pumping a lot and just it's going better. Is it still a pain in the bum? Heck yes. Yes.

Andrea Ippolito (8m 54s):

It's not this like mom on the lily pad experience at all. Like there's no rainbows and sunshine. It's a lot, it's a no days off, no nights off activity And I just feel a lot more supported this time around. So it's just going a lot better this time. But it's still hard. So

Katie Ferraro (9m 10s):

I first heard about you and your story when I listened to, I was on Sara Dean's Shameless Academy podcast and she's like you need to meet Andrea so I listened to the episode there and what really resonated with me was when you said this whole thing like lactated and breastfeeding support is included in the ACA as a covered benefit and yet most insurers aren't offering this. So can you tell us more about what insurers should be providing as far as lactation and feeding support goes And then what's actually happening out there? 'cause I know you know a ton about the insurance world.

Andrea Ippolito (9m 42s):

Yeah, so this like blew my mind as a first time parent that you know, under the Affordable Care Act commercial health plans and health plans in Medicaid expansion states, which by the way is in 40 outta 50 states. So the vast majority of states health are required to cover Breastfeeding and baby Feeding support starting during pregnancy to do prenatal education. So you know what to expect. So nothing's a surprise starting during pregnancy at no cost to you. Like so your health plan should be covering services by a lactation consultant no matter how you feed your baby. But in particular for breastfed babies, 'cause you know it's involves an organ breasts or organs.

Andrea Ippolito (10m 23s):

And also if you're combo Feeding by the way, you have access to this support too. And there are many health plans such as Aetna that will cover support even if you aren't breastfeeding and your health plans are required to cover these services at no cost to you starting during pregnancy without something called a prior authorization. Which means you don't need a referral Like so your health plan's supposed to cover it, you can start during pregnancy, it's supposed to go as long as you're breastfeeding in any capacity and you don't need a referral. And so that by the way is actually pretty rare in healthcare and the fact that this benefit exists and most people don't realize it is I think a tragedy of maternal health and more broadly women's health.

Andrea Ippolito (11m 5s):

And sadly it's a classic example of how women's health is left behind because many health plans actually most health plans sadly are not in compliance with this policy, which is insane. And so one of the goals of coming on podcasts like this is just for people to know that this is their right, this is a right under federal law to have access to this benefit for free covered by their house plan.

Katie Ferraro (11m 31s):

And I kind of reminds me of, I remember my first baby was born in 2014 so Affordable Care Act I think was like 2010 ish. Correct me if I'm wrong but I remember they were just starting like four years later to be like, oh hey you can get a free breast pump. And I was like what? 'cause like, you know prior to that like a breast pump was like a luxury item and it's like well like I gotta work so if I don't have one of these these breast pump things, I guess I'm never gonna be able to feed my baby breast milk. And one thing I remember at the time was I felt like, and this again I'm not a breast pump advocate or an affiliate for anyone. I just remember being like there were a lot of really crappy breast pumps where they were like, oh wait a minute, the government has to pay for this or the I insurers have to pay for this hold up, we're all gonna like flood the market with like, and it was so hard to pick a breast pump because all of a sudden everyone was trying to take advantage of this benefit with the breast pump.

Katie Ferraro (12m 19s):

But you're saying with the actual support like outside of the breast pump, like what sort of support is supposed to be provided? What does that mean?

Andrea Ippolito (12m 26s):

So the policy was officially implemented in January, 2012 and yeah like it's over 11 years later and and still like hasn't been implemented. So alongside the breast pump reimbursement policy, which is also fantastic and to your point, oh my goodness gracious. Yeah breast pumps need some innovate. I'm a biomedical engineer and I'm just like holy moly, we can do better there. And by the way, it's a medical device and the fact that parents are just, I have three engineering degrees, I'm a huge nerd, my mom's a huge nerd and they like we got the breast pump with my first kiddo and I was like I have no idea how to work this. We had to call customer support and like we're like hand handy people, like we get machines and the fact that we had no idea what to do, it just goes to show you how far we need to go.

Andrea Ippolito (13m 11s):

And and so related to that, alongside getting a breast pump, you're supposed to get access to support from a lactation consultant starting during pregnancy at no cost to you. So the policy explicitly states that you get access to a insurance covered breast pump and you get access to support and counseling, which I is considered by lactation consultants starting during pregnancy at no cost to you. And so what lactation consultants can work with you, they are baby feeding experts is they can work with you starting during pregnancy to come up with a plan for feeding and also educate you on what to expect. You know your milk doesn't come in for three to five days so and you're

Katie Ferraro (13m 50s):

Home from the hospital, no one tells you that. Like I know they give you a lactation consultant at the hospital but it doesn't matter because nothing's happening yet. No offense

Andrea Ippolito (13m 57s):

Oh. my gosh that is so true and it is so frustrating 'cause it's like the where there is the most support with the lactation result in the hospital doesn't make any logical sense 'cause your milk hasn't come in. It's just another example of like failed implementation in women's health because like there's literally no milk to work with and they can prepare you and get,

Katie Ferraro (14m 15s):

There's no lactation to consult on yet. I remember my oldest, they walked in like I hadn't even given birth 24 hours later she's like, I think you're gonna need to try formula. And my husband looked at her and was like, I think you just said that to like the wrong person. Like I was like are you serious? Like I teach again, I teach nutrition throughout the lifecycle. I'm a Registered Dietitian. We teach on how to start and feeding. I'm like I happen to know that it's not expected for my milk to come in and you guys are gonna kick me outta the hospital before that even happens. I really could have used support, like you said prior to this and we focus so much on the birth but not on the actual feeding And then obviously after. And I think you know, once you have a baby, most people, if you know you have in in a traditional healthcare setting in in the United States even with you know, minimal insurance, you're at at least aware like okay the hospital has some sort of a breastfeeding support.

Katie Ferraro (14m 55s):

Like there's a class and there's a a certified somebody with lactation background there. Does that count as support? Is that how they try to like fulfill this requirement? I'm like everybody go to one class where 30 of you are there with one person or is did it say like one-on-one support?

Andrea Ippolito (15m 8s):

So one-on-one support is supposed to be covered and it's supposed to be covered over time. So multiple appointments. It's not just like you have one appointment and it's because frankly baby feeding evolves. What baby feeding looks like in the first week is gonna look a whole lot different than it looks like now at 12 weeks. And by the way, in those first few weeks you probably need a lot of appointments 'cause you're troubleshooting and you're encountering issues or not and you're proactively trying to get ahead of something. Maybe your supply is not where you want it to be and you wanna increase it. Maybe you're transitioning back to work, maybe you're experiencing pain like I did and you need a lot of support. maybe you are trying to get new position 'cause your back is hurting and or your baby has torticollis like mine and you're trying to work on new positions to help prevent issues and and really work on that.

Andrea Ippolito (15m 56s):

And so this is supposed to be one-on-one support based on your goals And lactation consultants are baby feeding experts that can work with you on that.

Katie Ferraro (16m 6s):

Hey, we're gonna take a quick break but I'll be right back.

Katie Ferraro (16m 47s):

So you have this experience as a first time mom and then you recognize this gap in like there's this legislation and we're supposed to get this and we're not getting it. How does Simpli Fed then come to evolve?

Andrea Ippolito (16m 58s):

Yeah so you know there's nothing like a scorn mom to really get

Katie Ferraro (17m 4s):

With three engineering degrees, watch out!

Andrea Ippolito (17m 6s):

to solve a problem. And we have an amazing team but what Simpli Fed is is we're trying to really improve access to baby Feeding and Breastfeeding support no matter how you feed your baby covered by your insurance at no cost to you starting during pregnancy. And we really are the maternal health leaders and lactation support and and the way we do that is we work with health systems, they refer to us also. Anyone can come to our website Simplifed.com. It wants to autocorrect the simplified but it's Simpli Fed and we start working with families virtually during pregnancy. And by the way you can do multiple prenatal appointments similar how you do multiple prenatal appointments in general. I certainly did multiple prenatal appointments to come up with a plan and and keep learning more.

Andrea Ippolito (17m 50s):

But we start working with families during pregnancy to do a lot of listening, understand their goals for baby feeding or do a lot of education to talk about their options and what that looks like for them. Prepare them for what to expect, you know, if their goals direct Feeding at the breast. Like okay what to think for to get that optimal latch, a deep latch so that it's less painful and and really your baby's getting as much milk as they can and want to and or if pumping is part of the plan, getting your pump squared away selected, getting size for a pump. 'cause by the way, breasts are different sizes shock. And so you need to have a a flange or shield size which is the part of the pump that attaches to your breast that needs to get sized properly so that it works effectively and efficiently isn't causing pain.

Andrea Ippolito (18m 35s):

And so during pregnancy we, we do a lot of this prep work or or our providers, I just say I'm not a provider. Our lactation consultants do a lot of this work but we also set expectations of what breastfeeding baby looks like. So your milk doesn't come in for three to five days and and this is what hand expression looks like and and skin to skin and here's the benefits of that and all the things but really setting expectations and that is so important because when a woman doesn't reach their Breastfeeding or baby feeding expectations, they're much more likely to be diagnosed with postpartum depression and anxiety. So we work with them, feel prepared and confident. I can say with my third kiddo I did feel prepared and confident and it went better 'cause you know baby picks up on your stress and by the way who, I mean who cares about baby just and like if you're stressed that's not great for you.

Katie Ferraro (19m 20s):

And now you have two other kids that are adding to the stress level. It's even harder. So I commend you for sticking with it and I like that you've always shared openly like this was not easy for you. And that's hard. Like a lot of our audience who are dietitians, it's like you think this is supposed to be the most natural thing in the world but like it's not. And no matter who you are it does not come naturally in many cases. And so I love this idea of ongoing support and I know you've been talking a lot about the insurance companies but I wanted to ask for families who don't have insurance. Like I know I do a lot of work with the state WIC agencies. So we teach about safe introduction of solid foods and we're helping to modernize the infant feeding curriculum and WIC and this is what low-income, pregnant postpartum Breastfeeding moms receive when they're in the WIC program. Many of whom don't have you know, traditional insurance. So what about for families who don't have insurance can Simpli Fed help them?

Andrea Ippolito (20m 1s):

Yeah, for sure. We have a free 24/7 support line. The majority of care we do is actually with Medicaid beneficiaries and many folks that qualify for WIC also should be qualifying for for Medicaid health plans as well. And so one of the things we like to do is try is educate folks on how do you get access just more broadly like outside of baby feeding support, how do you get enrolled within a Medicaid health plan. Now that's like still difficult for some folks and so we provide a free hotline for anyone that wants to call and get support And the good news is WIC has tons of baby feeding support from peer counselors or lactation consultants themselves.

Andrea Ippolito (20m 45s):

And in 40 out 50 states Medicaid plans are required to cover breastfeeding support too. So if you are in wic you most of the time there are cases you usually are eligible to enroll in a Medicaid plan if

Katie Ferraro (21m 1s):

You're in wic do they say your benefits already been met because obviously you're getting Breastfeeding support from the WIC program. Can Medicaid then say well you wouldn't qualify for Simpli Fed services because you're in wic. Do they like they probably don't even talk to each other at this point. I don't know.

Andrea Ippolito (21m 13s):

Well sadly they don't often talk to each other. But the ACA a policy actually this it's implemented via CMS policy in January, 2012. The CMS policy actually calls us out like alongside WIC you're also eligible for services via Medicaid plans and Medicaid expansion states. So you are supposed to get care via plans in Medicaid expansion states, which is four outta 50 states. So

Katie Ferraro (21m 37s):

I'm just curious like okay obviously there's lots of legislation that people ignore, don't pay attention to like in this very case like you are supposed to get breastfeeding support and nobody's actually getting it. So you have this business idea, this business model, you come up with these vetted lactation professionals, And, then you go to the insurers and you're like, do you want this Or is it more of like you have to have this 'cause you don't currently have it? Like how did you start getting tied in with the insurers? Because I can't imagine that they like loved it 'cause there's, it's an expensive undertaking.

Andrea Ippolito (22m 3s):

Yeah, so it's a great question. So, so much in healthcare, like we're very lucky in the sense that there is a federal policy that mandates it. And even with, to your point just now with the federal policy that's mandating it, no one's enforcing it. And that's actually really frustrating 'cause the White House last September said that HHS and CMS center for Medicare Medicaid services as part of HHS the White House said last September that HHS and CMS are going to start enforcing this policy and they haven't yet. So a lot of what I've been doing recently is saying, hey, a year ago you said that you were gonna start implementing this policy and by the way this policy's over a decade old and you still haven't enforced it.

Andrea Ippolito (22m 43s):

And so a lot of what we do is, is really doing this rally cry like look you're, there's this policy that families are supposed to have and you said you're gonna start enforcing it with health plans. And usually how it's enforced is based something called network adequacy where they go in and check that there's enough providers per a certain number of members and no one's doing that yet with this. So we've been like really, you know, sounding the horns that this is like health plans are noncompliance with this policy. And the good news is once we start going to health plans, they're pretty keen to cover it because there is so many benefits. It benefits mom's physical health, mom's mental health who knew that mattered.

Andrea Ippolito (23m 24s):

But I mean, goodness gracious, it took long to get that, to get the recognition that mom's mental health matters in particular. And and sadly we need so much more resources there and and that but, but it's a starting point. But there is starting to be more of a recognition that mom's physical and mental health matters and baby's health matters. And so the good news is once we start working with health plans, they get it. And every now and then we need to remind them that hey this is the federal requirement and we're happy to sound the alarms and call you out if you'd like. So we just have to show them that. But but more importantly we convince them with clinical data. We show them the peer review data and our platform as an example, 87% of patients are still breastfeeding at three months compared to the national average of 69%.

Andrea Ippolito (24m 8s):

We couldn't claim attribution yet. We are doing a clinical study but we see that our patients have a postpartum utilization rate of 2.6% compared to the national average of 7.6%. So like it pays for itself because we provide proactive care. That's

Katie Ferraro (24m 22s):

The language that insurers understand like they love, we all love helping people but how much money are we helping you save by not having to, you know, not having, and I'm sure you guys are doing data on in mastitis and and these things still come up and that's the point of having the continual care. It's not like you, I think we've thought about breastfeeding support historically, like check all the boxes before we have a baby. Did you do your CPR class check? Did you do the breastfeeding class like one breastfeeding class with like five other chicks and you're pregnant and you're so scared about having this baby, you were not really thinking about all of the different variables that come into play when you start feeding a baby. Like this idea of ongoing 'cause problems arise. I think that's really what's so valuable about your service. What year did you guys start like you're operation like was it this presidential administration or the previous one I guess is what I'm really asking?

Andrea Ippolito (25m 4s):

So we started officially providing services in 2020 and we really kinda hit the ground running in 2022.

Katie Ferraro (26m 27s):

Andrea, how do you vet or verify lactation professionals? Like I know from my own experiences, not every lactation educator IBCLC was a good fit for me. So it takes a while to find someone who has the right tone and the expertise and I know I personally feel that I really benefited from the hands-on assistance of an IBCLC. I'm just curious how lactation support works in a virtual space and are success rates similar to that of the in-person experience?

Andrea Ippolito (26m 50s):

Yeah, thanks so much for asking that. So first off, Simpli Fed vets all of our providers and we vet for them for all the typical things you'd wanna vet a provider for background checks and these types of things. And in particular in our case, we make sure to vet them that they are inclusive with Feeding. So they're not gonna judge, they're not gonna push breastfeeding if someone wants to formula feed either fully or in combination. And we really make sure that our care providers meet you where you're at. They have a lot of empathy, they do a lot of listening and are inclusive. And we find by the way, by being inclusive, we're able to increase breastfeeding rates 'cause people feel more comfortable coming to us. And that sounds counterintuitive to a lot of people, but our data speaks for itself.

Andrea Ippolito (27m 33s):

And so by being inclusive and meeting folks where they're at, we're able to improve breastfeeding rates. And so that's, you know, kind of the second piece of our vetting process. And you know what's really important to us is that parents have access to care and in-person care matters, right? I've gotten in-person care like we talked about in hospital settings and in pediatric settings and it's helpful to get that initial elbow to elbow care and say that first well baby visit or in hospital setting. But we find that parents in particular parents with a newborn or especially during pregnancy too, you to go to another appointment's a lot until like when you're as someone who's just been pregnant for a third time.

Katie Ferraro (28m 12s):

Although sometimes you're grateful to have somewhere to go like I should leave the house today, I should go to breastfeeding support.

Andrea Ippolito (28m 18s):

That's true. And I hope that it's also something that brings you additional joy. I know, but it's true. And so during pregnancy and postpartum, like it's tough to leave the house, especially with the newborn. And though you definitely should get out if you want to and can. But we find that virtual support is a community. So you access it more and I'm, I'm dealing with this right now with my postpartum appointments. Like you just don't schedule it or you just don't go or it just doesn't happen if it's just another thing. And that's true if you have one kiddo or especially if you have multiple kiddos and you're trying to find coverage for them. And so we find that by being virtual, it helps dramatically improve access to care.

Andrea Ippolito (29m 0s):

And especially this is an equity issue. We have many patients say I cannot afford to put gas in my car for another appointment or I can't pay for parking or I can't take off time from work. And we offer care seven days a week, 24 7. And so we meet parents where they're at. And so it really improves access dramatically. The other thing that is important to note is that we're providing care in the setting that you're going to be baby feeding that matters because when you're doing those positions and clinical settings, great but then you, yeah

Katie Ferraro (29m 32s):

Like maybe I don't have that pillow at my house or that fancy chair like

Andrea Ippolito (29m 36s):

Exactly. And so, or like the all like in the clinic they do have the footstool and all the things. They have the the firm pad and it to your exact point. And so our providers work with you in your setting and you're building that muscle memory itself. Like I remember when I went home from the hospital my first kiddo and I was like, I do not remember what positioning like I, whereas when you're doing it in your home, you're building that muscle memory. So we are working on a clinical study with UMass Chair Medical School to further prove this model out. But those anecdotally are what we hear from parents and the summary is you need both elbow to elbow in person care is fantastic. I've used it with all three of my kiddos. And having virtual care where you can do multiple appointments during, during pregnancy and postpartum for as long as you want to also matters.

Katie Ferraro (30m 22s):

Okay, so take me through the experience like let's say I'm a mom listening to this podcast episode. We have parents who are just starting solid foods with their baby around the six month mark, but a lot are prior to that 'cause they're kind of just looking at what's next. But we also have parents who are pregnant. And so for anyone interested lactation or feeding support, how would you get started with Simpli Fed? Like what should they do?

Andrea Ippolito (30m 43s):

So first off, come check out our website simplifed.com and you can fill out a form that's on like right on the homepage of our website or you can text us and you'll be greeted by when you text us and it's you know, secure via our platform. You'll be greeted by our baby Feeding ally. And just for note there, our number is (888) 458-1364. You can call or text us to get started or fill out the form on our website and you'll be greeted by our baby Feeding ally, which is a peer mom navigator that will help you get scheduled, check your insurance, do all the things, they'll help you schedule an appointment at a convenient time for you. They'll send you reminders ahead of your appointment, they'll send you the secure links, the video links.

Andrea Ippolito (31m 27s):

Then in your first appointment, if it starts during pregnancy, you do a lot of listening, understanding your goals, give you education based on those goals, And, then you share your projected or expected due date, we check in with you ahead of that. Or once a baby's born you can text us directly or call us and just let us know right from the hospital, that's what I did, that my, my baby was born. I'm ready to get care, I'd like to schedule an appointment for the night. I return home from the hospital or the day after whenever it's convenient for you. and then we start providing ongoing care. And frankly start off with your goals for the appointment. If you're like, I don't even know where to start, we do have our care pathway, our clinical practice guidelines that help guide folks through the process, but it's tailored to what your goals are.

Andrea Ippolito (32m 10s):

And that support can be from anything surrounding latching positioning, dealing with pain, undersupply, oversupply, oral assessments of tongue tie, getting size for a breast pump. How do you use a breast pump? You know, what is the, dang I have my pump here 'cause I'm actually due to pump in a few minutes. You know, I always laugh 'cause I'm one of the pumps. There's the like little button that looks like bacon And so like what is the bacon symbol mean and how to effectively use it, a combo feed. How to work through complimentary feeding, leaning, transitioning back to work, transitioning to daycare, whatever that need is, our providers will work with you. And you know, I'm a user of the platform. So, I cannot express enough how wonderful it is just to have someone to validate you or talk through like actually this is something you can consider, but they really truly do a lot of listening and meet you where you're at and designing a plan that works for you.

Andrea Ippolito (33m 2s):

As an example, I really wanted to sleep six hours a night as soon as I could. And you know, in the early days it, you do have to get up, baby wants to get up and to keep up your supply. But once your supply gets to a good spot and baby's at a good way, you can start to get a little bit more sleep. And so my providers worked with us to get there. 'cause frankly my mental health matters and matters more. And sleep is such a big part of that.

Katie Ferraro (33m 26s):

I logistical question, like if you're there and you're holding the baby, you're trying to breastfeed, like what do you do with your phone so that the person can see, you know, your angle, your latch, like all that sort of stuff. How does that work? Like do sudden tripods?

Andrea Ippolito (33m 38s):

It's totally up to you. What we found works well is like you're holding the baby with an arm and holding the phone in the other And, then you can do this. If you're trying to show a new position, you can prop it up on a pillow on your couch. Like most folks are doing it from their couch. You know, it's all about comfort. Like feel free to wear clothes, no clothes. Your choice, we, we meet you where you're at. Truly hair in a messy bun. You don't need to get dressed for us, you're all good. But you know, prop it up via pillow. We have partners participate, you know, mother-in-laws, grandmas participate to hold the phone or you can prop it up or you can go audio only. It's, it's truly up to you. Our providers are pretty used to that and they'll guide folks. They know that the phone is gonna be up facing the ceiling and that's okay sometimes.

Andrea Ippolito (34m 19s):

'cause it's all about you getting comfortable and positioning.

Katie Ferraro (34m 23s):

It's amazing what you can accomplish. Even just the visual, like even now you and I are on a video call, obviously people are listening on the podcast, but like when you see someone, you really can connect with them. I know we have in our program an office hours component where parents come on and they ask questions that they're dealing with in the transition to solid foods. You know, my baby's high chair doesn't fit right, show me the high chair. Turn around phone around. What if you took the tray off, pushes the baby up to the chair, what if we put a book under the, you know, you're like actually troubleshooting right there to get this baby safe. Or you know, okay, show me what the meat looks like. Let me see the consistency and the texture. All right, shred it between your fingers. Okay. You know, that's definitely too dry. You can sometimes do more, I feel like remotely like this to help people if you have their undivided attention for a short period of time. And I love like the flexibility of your program where you can actually just go and make the appointment when it works for you.

Katie Ferraro (35m 5s):

Just curious, like what if you don't connect with the lactation provider that you've been, I don't know, assigned. Do you have like a network or how does it work? Like, you know, with some online therapy businesses, if you don't have a connection or you just wanna try someone else, you can switch. Is that something that you can do with Simpli Fed?

Andrea Ippolito (35m 24s):

That's another benefit of our platform is yeah, we have a whole network of providers. So if you're like, no, that really wasn't like what they were saying really wasn't working for like their style wasn't working for me, you can absolutely switch and that's a key part. And, and you're not, you know, walking into a, a brick and mortar office and having to see them around and it'd be awkward, right? You're, it's cool. There are no feelings will be hurt. You can switch very easily. And also cultural competency matters. So we, many of our providers are NICU experts or they are, you know, military veterans or military spouses. if you're in the military and have that cultural competency. It also, it matters, you know, having someone that looks like you, that is your race or ethnicity that really, you know, resonates with your needs and your goals.

Andrea Ippolito (36m 11s):

That also matters. And we having providers that are providing that culturally congruent and competent care. It matters. You know, all skin colors are, are different colors. And the way man a mastitis manifests is different for different skin colors. And having providers that have expertise on that matters and someone that really reflects your goals and needs also matters. And so being able to switch providers as needed is also part of our platform.

Katie Ferraro (36m 39s):

Hey, we're gonna take a quick break, but I'll be right back.

Katie Ferraro (37m 54s):

So Andrea I love, I love your enthusiasm. I love that you're actually like a real life mom. You know, I love all the statistics that are about like female led companies. Do all these things better than the ones with moms. Do them even better. It's like you are living this, going through it. So like you really understand the needs of your population. And since we're both, you know, working in the infant feeding space, I would assume we have a lot of overlapping audience members and clients and customers. And I know my goal with our baby-led weaning work is to make force feeding, infant spice spoon a thing of the past. Because Babies can eat so many more foods than we give them credit for and they can do it and they want to do it on their own. What is the ultimate goal that you are hoping to achieve with Simpli Fed?

Andrea Ippolito (38m 31s):

So our goal with Simpli Fed is to elevate this as a clinical specialty, which it is breasts or organs, right? And, and the fact that this isn't a clinical specialty, which impacts every baby born, whether you're breastfeeding, formula feeding, pumping is insane to me and it and is a no days off, no nights off activity. So the, our goal, and we won't stop until it reaches goal, is to elevate this clinical specialty. Ensure that every parent gets access to insurance cover and support at no cost to them. And that every family feels good about feeding their baby whatever that looks like to them in those early days. Well,

Katie Ferraro (39m 10s):

Thank you so much for taking the time to explain your story but also your business. I really appreciate and respect the work that you're doing and I know our audience does as well.

Andrea Ippolito (39m 18s):

Oh, well I appreciate you and the work that you're doing and thank you. Thank you, thank you. The moon and back.

Katie Ferraro (39m 23s):

Well, I hope you guys enjoyed that interview with Andrea Ippolito from Simpli Fed. They're on Instagram at Simpli Fed Baby online. It's Simpli Fed. So simplifed.com. I'll link up all of the resources that Andrea mentioned in today's episode on the Shownotes, which you can find at BLW podcast.com/ 3 8 4. And a special thank you to our partners at AirWave Media. if you guys like podcast, the feature, food and science and using your brain, definitely check out some of the other podcasts from AirWave. We're online at BLW podcast.com. Thanks again for listening and I'll see you next time If you're interested in doing baby-led weaning, but you're not exactly sure, like what does that mean?

Katie Ferraro (40m 9s):

What does it look like? Where do I start? My online program called Baby-Led Weaning with Katie. Ferraro has everything you need to give your baby a safe start to Solid FOODS and get them to eat over a hundred foods before they turn one, whether you're terrified of choking or maybe you've started but you feel like you're feeding your baby the same Foods over and over 'cause you don't know what to feed next or you're looking for guidance on how to prepare FOODS safely for your baby's age and stage. My program has exactly what you need. There's five hours of concise self-paced video training. You can knock this thing out during nap time this week. You also get access to my hundred First Foods content library so you can see and learn exactly how to prep all of the a hundred foods as well as my original a hundred days meal plan. I've been refining this program for the last seven years.

Katie Ferraro (40m 50s):

Just today, a mom wrote to me and told me that the a hundred days meal plan has been a quote game changer for her busy lifestyle. When you join the program, you also get access to over a hundred phase two combination food recipe. So you're gonna try out the trickier textures, push your baby's palate. And what's cool about these recipes is your whole family will enjoy them. So everything you need to give your baby a safe start to solid foods is inside of the program. It's created by me, a Registered dietician who specializes in infant feeding. If you're tired of hunting and pecking around the internet trying to piece this stuff together on your own, I put it all in one convenient place for you. I invite you to check out the Baby-Led weaning with Katie Ferraro program that's at babyledweaning.co again, that website is babyledweaning.co and click on program to learn more.