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YOU AT YOUR BEST | NWADG.COM/YOUATYOURBEST MAY - BEST NURSES | SATURDAY, APRIL 29, 2017 | 13 Tonia Squires has spent many hours teaching new parents how to properly take care of their newborn babies, and she has enjoyed every second of it. Squires, a CertiÀ ed Lactation Consultant and Labor and Delivery Nurse at the Johnelle Hunt Women's Center in Washington Regional, has helped the center make outstanding progress in breastfeeding education through numerous programs and classes. Squires provides support to new mothers by teaching breastfeeding preparation classes before the baby's birth, individual breastfeeding educa- tion while the mother is in the hos- pital and continued counseling after the family returns home. She has also taught a program where more than 130 staff nurse members became cer- tiÀ ed breastfeeding advisors. These are just a few of the reasons why she was selected À rst runner-up in the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Ga- zette's Best Nurses for 2017. "Tonia has been an outstand- ing asset to our lactation team," said Meredith Green, Director of Women and Infant Services at Washington Regional. "She has been responsible for providing the 21 hours of lactation education in order to progress our in- stitution to a baby-friendly facility." Squires has been a nurse for 21 years, but was a pediatric nurse for the À rst 12 years. She developed a passion for babies after having four of her own, and decided she would help others navigate through childbirth from then on. "Tonia is a very passionate and caring nurse who exhibits leadership and dedication to all whose lives she touches," Green said. "She ensures tools are provided to facilitate com- passionate and safe care to all our patients. Her demeanor, work ethic, passion and consistent results are re- Á ective of her professionalism and dedication to excellence and the nurs- ing profession. The proof of her ex- cellence is conÀ rmed by the stacks of 'thank you' letters from her patients. Parents continue to call after being discharged home to sing her praises." Squires has an important task, but one that may get overlooked at times when it comes to the over- whelming responsibility that is being a parent. "I feel like women and families really need the support that I try to provide," Squires said. "I try to fo- cus on breastfeeding as a relationship between the newborn and the parents just as much as the nutritional value it provides to the baby. It is a wonderful experience and they deserve to enjoy it as much as possible." Medical professionals are rec- ommending getting away from the bottle and breastfeeding more, con- trary to what American culture has preferred in the last 50 years. "If you go to other countries, it isn't a big deal to see women breast- feeding in public," Squires said. "But I would say 95 percent of our fami- lies now really want to breastfeed and like doing it. I think we are building toward it being more acceptable to breastfeed in our culture than it used to be. It's just what is normal for a human baby and it may even draw less attention than your baby crying in public." When she's not at the hospital, Squires likes to hike, Á oat on the river and do other outdoors activities. "My dad was in the military so we moved around a lot growing up," she said. "My ideal living area was al- ways in a college town and I felt that Fayetteville was perfect for what I was looking for. It is growing a lot but it's still small enough that my patients stop to talk to me in the grocery store. This is pretty much my dream job and I love doing what I do." Tonia Squires Helps To Make Real Dreams Come True for Patients BY JUSTIN FREEMAN NWA DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE Tonia Suires, is named À rst runner-up in the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette's Best Nurses for 2017. NWA BEST NURSES 2017