August 24th, 2026 — Dr. Nicole Forlan
Dr. Nicole Forlan teaches nursing at UNC Chapel Hill. She has practiced in Barbados, Kenya, and across the maternal-newborn units of central North Carolina. She is an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant. She is a mentor to dozens of future nurses each year.
And on the Saturdays when she volunteers with the Breastfeed Durham Lactation Collaborative, she says, those credentials all step back.
I am a nurse. I am a lactation consultant. I am an educator. But first and foremost, I am a human being — and the Lactation Collaborative allows me to do what matters most to me: build meaningful human connections.
Dr. Forlan brings her clinical expertise to families who would otherwise have no way to access her — uninsured families, families navigating language barriers, families for whom traditional lactation care is financially out of reach. Recently, she described one such family.
“A family came to us with an infant learning how to feed and a mom dealing with physical and intellectual disabilities. They were uninsured, non-English-speaking, and unable to access equitable care anywhere else.”
What followed was the kind of consult the Collaborative was built for.
By the end of the consult, they didn’t just leave with an infant feeding plan. They left feeling less alone, less scared of the journey ahead. Knowing they had somewhere to go, someone to talk to, lifted a huge weight off their shoulders. This work matters.
Dr. Forlan’s commitment to equitable care reflects her broader career arc. As a Clinical Assistant Professor at the UNC School of Nursing, she specializes in maternal-newborn care and reproductive health, with a focus on outcomes for at-risk populations. She has shared her clinical expertise in international settings and continues to invest in global collaboration. As a nurse educator since 2018, she shapes the next generation of nurses who will care for childbearing families across our state.
The Lactation Collaborative, for her, is where all of that meets the ground.
“For decades, support has been shown to be one of the most influential factors in families achieving their goals with breastfeeding. It’s the reason I went into lactation work — because I saw how support was different for certain populations. All families should have support for not only their infant feeding goals, but also for this vulnerable time period that comes after having a child.”
Infant feeding lays the foundation for the rest of a human being’s life. So this work matters. And the community and connection made possible by the Lactation Collaborative makes a difference in the experience families are having in our community, postpartum and beyond.
— Dr. Nicole Forlan, IBCLC · Clinical Assistant Professor, UNC School of Nursing · Lactation Collaborative volunteer
About the Breastfeed Durham Lactation Collaborative
The Lactation Collaborative is a free, culturally responsive lactation clinic serving uninsured and underinsured families across the Triangle. We are designed for any parent who feels access to lactation care is a financial barrier — no insurance, no documentation, no proof of need required. We offer in-home visits and clinic visits, in English and Spanish, with a team of volunteer IBCLCs, CLCs, and Pathway 3 students.
If you need lactation support, please reach out!
Lactation Collaborative Home Visit: https://teachingbabies.intakeq.com/booking?locationId=5
Lactation Collaborative Clinic Visit: https://teachingbabies.intakeq.com/booking?locationId=6
Visita Domiciliaria: https://teachingbabies.intakeq.com/booking?locationId=7
Consulta en la Clínica: https://teachingbabies.intakeq.com/booking?locationId=8
Para obtener apoyo a la lactancia en español, llame al 919-646-5130 o 339-225-1212
Gratitude and the road ahead.
The Lactation Collaborative launched in September 2025 thanks to the vision and generosity of a private donor who believed in this work. The MAG Mutual Foundation has sustained our first full year of operations, and we are deeply grateful for their investment in equitable lactation care. As we look toward year two and beyond, we are actively seeking the next funding partners to keep this care free and accessible. If your organization, foundation, or family fund is interested in supporting this work, please reach out to Love Anderson at love@breastfeedingcommunities.org.