Empowering Women and Children through Nutrition
OneWorld’s WIC Program supports nutrition education and access
Goals and nutrition go hand in hand, but without knowledge, access and support nutrition can fall by the wayside. OneWorld’s Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children is a resource for patients to meet their personal nutrition goals and help their children develop healthy nutrition habits.
“We offer nutrition counseling and a food benefits card, similar to food stamps, however we only offer healthy foods,” said Ingrid Landin, WIC Manager. “Nutrition is different for pregnant women versus a baby, so our nutrition specialists help patients learn how to use their food benefits well for everyone in their household, including themselves.”
In addition to nutrition counseling, the WIC Program’s lactation specialists help mothers who are struggling to breastfeed their infants.
“We had a patient who was unable to breastfeed and that caused stress and was preventing her from meeting her goals,” said Ingrid. “She worked with one of our lactation specialists and was able to successfully breastfeed, which allowed her to focus on meeting her personal nutrition goals. She was so happy that we could help her.”
WIC is a program for women who are pregnant, breastfeeding or non-breastfeeding postpartum and their children up to the age of five.
Participants must be residents of Nebraska to receive services from the OneWorld WIC clinic. Eligibility is determined by income-level, number of family members and nutrition risk. Patients who receive benefits from other federal programs such as Medicaid or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program automatically qualify for WIC services.
At OneWorld, clinicians can refer patients to the WIC Program.
“Everyone at the WIC clinic, as of now, speaks Spanish so we are able to serve the Hispanic population without the need of an interpreter,” said Ingrid. “That makes the appointments more personal and inclusive and helps our patients feel welcome.”
Due to Covid-19, all WIC services are currently remote. While the in person height, weight, iron level and lead level assessments are not available, the nutrition counseling services and food benefits cards continue to help women learn about nutrition and get access to nutrient dense foods.
“Around 90% of women active in the program are actively using their benefits and that’s really great,” said Ingrid. “These women are meeting their goals and improving their health and their children’s health. We’re here to help them out and support them as best we can.”
At OneWorld, We Care for All People.
