IRELAND’S only life-saving breast milk bank has put out a crisis call for volunteers as if faces what it calls an 'exceptional shortage'.
The breast-milk bank is based in Irvinestown, Co Fermanagh, and provides lifesaving breast milk to over 900 babies a year. It is facing a shortage of milk, despite heavy donor recruitment, and is calling on mothers from across Northern Ireland and beyond to donate to help replenish stocks and help save the lives of sick newborn babies.
Donating your breast milk is one of the most precious gifts that fellow mothers can offer and helps to save the lives of premature and sick babies whose mums are unable, for many reasons, to provide them with sufficient breast milk of their own.
Donor breast milk is magical stuff and contains many of the protective factors, such as immunoglobulins which are not present in formula milk, which help protect premature babies from infection. Donor breast milk may also have a protective role against the serious gut condition necrotising enterocolitis which mainly affects premature babies.
A pre-term baby’s intestine is very immature and can digest and absorb breast milk more easily than formula milk. Premature babies are fed small amounts of breast milk to help their gut mature and the volumes fed are increased gradually. This is also true for babies who have had surgery on their gut.
Managed by the Western Health and Social Care Trust, the Milk Bank at Fermanagh receives donations from around Ireland and has been exceptionally busy for months, caring for increasingly smaller babies and helping a greater number of multiple births across Ireland, north and south, which has resulted in them using up large quantities of donated breast milk. This has drastically reduced the stocks of milk that are left in the milk bank and has prompted the crisis call.
The milk collected in Fermanagh will be made available to sick babies in hospitals and other specialist baby units throughout Ireland. Donors are mothers who are breastfeeding their own babies of six months and under, but have excess milk and are prepared to help other babies, by donating some of their breast milk. This gesture can help tiny, premature, sick babies survive and leave hospital more quickly. Donors are asked to provide a donation of at least 3 litres (100ozs), by the time their baby is six months old.
A full history is taken from all potential donors and blood tests are undertaken for HIV 1 and 2, HTLV 1 and 2, Hepatitis B and C and Syphilis. The milk bank cannot accept donations from mothers that have had a blood transfusion, smoke, received certain IVF treatments or are taking antidepressants.
All donor milk is checked for bacteria, protein and fat content. All the milk has to be pasteurised under UK regulations. After Holder pasteurisation, it is checked again for bacteria. Only clear milk can then be issued to the units. Milk is labelled – so hospitals can use the most appropriate milk for the babies in their care.
The milk bank is appealing to mothers who may have a quantity of milk in their freezer, for help; particularly if this milk is from a premature baby where stocks are at their lowest. Mothers with babies under three months of age, who think that they could provide at least three litres of milk, are also needed.
The milk bank issues pre-sterile bottles. The donors record their name and expression date on each bottle. Once donors have collected sufficient milk they contact the milk bank for a transport box which is then sent to the bank using a variety of transport routes and deep frozen in insulated boxes.
Donating breast milk is a wonderful thing for any mother to do for another mother who is going through very dark days watching her child struggle to survive and thrive. If you can help, please do.
All that potential donors have to do is contact the milk bank on tmb.irvinestown@westerntrsut.hscni.net or ring 028 686 28333 and the milk bank staff will guide you through the donation process.
