Kathy Parry, MPH, IBCLC, LMBT is a team member of the Carolina Global Breastfeeding Institute (CGBI) in the Department of Maternal and Child Health. At CGBI, Kathy is Director of Prenatal Breastfeeding Education and management team member for the EMPower Initiative, a CDC-funded effort to increase the number of Baby-Friendly designated maternity-care facilities in the United States. She also facilitates global projects at CGBI and is the communications lead for the institute. Her previous work at CGBI includes the development of an adaptable Responsive Feeding curriculum for low-income countries fighting malnutrition and stunting, as well as published research on women’s perception of infant formula advertising. Kathy is an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC), Licensed Massage and Bodywork Therapist (LMBT), a Certified Educator of Infant Massage and a former DONA-certified birth doula. Her service work includes a staff advisor role for the graduate student group, Carolina BEBES, and ongoing participation on the executive board of the North Carolina Breastfeeding Coalition since joining CGBI (currently serving as Chair).

Honors and Awards

Impact in Practice Award

2017, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Robert E. Bryant Public Service Award

2012, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Delta Omega Honorary Society

2012, Johns Hopkins University

Research Activities

• Responsive Feeding
• Infant Massage / Partner Involvement
• Infant Formula Marketing
  

Key Publications

Innovative Prenatal Breastfeeding Education Curriculum: Ready, Set, BABY. Parry K. (2017). Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, 49.

Health Professional Associations and Industry Funding – reply from Parry et al. Parry K, Sullivan C, Stuebe AM (2017). Lancet, 389(10080), 1696.

Achieving Exclusive Breastfeeding: Translating Research into Practice. Labbok MH, Taylor E, Parry K (2013). Hale Publishing.

Understanding Women’s Perceptions of Infant Formula Advertising. Parry K, Taylor E, Labbok M (2013). Birth, 40.

Education

MPH, Maternal and Child Health, UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, 2012

IBCLC, Mary Rose Tully Training Initiative, Lactation Consulting, UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, 2012

LMBT, Massage Therapy, Blue Cliff College, 2003

BA, German, Business Administration, University of North Carolina, 1999