Interested in being involved in a campaign to increase breastmilk donation?

[organiccarrotcake]

A few of us are discussing this and possibly trying to include MN.

Suggested areas to target:

• Increasing the number of UK milk banks
• Increasing the number of milk donors
• Raising awareness of milk donation both to BFing mums who can donate and to parents of babies in SCBU who need the milk

Anyone interested in being involved? Even in a tiny way? We are all very busy with babies and/or children so obviously that can make it really tough to get tied into something but even a few minutes here and there from a group of people makes a big difference :)

Yes! There is nowhere to donate milk in Wales. I have so much of it and can express very easily with babies who never will take a bottle. Seems like such a waste.

Absolutely - I was really disappointed to find that my closest milk bank was too far away to reasonably donate. I'm sure there are many women in the same position, so increasing the number of milk banks would presumably lead to an increase in the number of milk donors.

Count me in:)

I would be interested - am going to look into donating milk myself as I find expressing easy, although dd won't drink it from a bottle.

It would be better targeted at the nhs to improve the milk bank situation.. Better funding etc.

Both of my dc were premature so I'm behind anything that improves The availability of human breast milk to poorly babies but I think you could get every woman in the uk to donate but if the facilities are not in place to collect, pasturise, store and distribute it it would be a waste of time.

I tried to donate after ds was home and the first time wss told I couldn't as the freezer was broken and the second it was because I'd been prescribed domperidone to increase my milk supply and was told it was unsafe despite ebf my 27weeker by that point.

I only ever needed Dbm for my dd as I was given truly horrific breastfeeding advise by the hospital. If mums of premature and sick babies are given decent advise and support the need for the milk bank wouldnt be as great.. Where is best to spend the money ?

Raising awareness would be a great idea. I had gallons of the bloody stuff, and while never being that hot at producing much via pumping I'd have easily managed an extra few oz a day. Not that I'd even heard of such a thing until DS was a few months old, and I'm quite rural here so not sure how likely it is that I could contribute.

If you're quick, I'm due number 2 in a week

Appologies for missing out the - "Increasing the number of UK milk banks"

My offspring were climbing up my legs

Great feedback, ah. My feeling is that increasing the number of milk banks is really important and I am trying to do this in my area. However my local(ish) MB is short of milk so clearly new donors are needed.

Using free or low cost methods (eg MN, Facebook) we can increase donor numbers. With a concerted campaign we can increase milk banks. That leaves the NHS and local councils to work on BF support (eg the brilliant "Little Angels" we have locally).

x-post

Ok looks like we could get lots of interest!

Any thoughts about what areas people would want to focus on?

I'm thinking:

• Increase awareness of milk banking to increase donor numbers
• Campaign for new milk banks to be opened
• Set up regional teams to collect milk to take to milk banks which may not be local

??

I'll be behind it 100% :)

The hospital where I had my ds only gave Dbm to the very ill babies and I was led to believe that it wasnt because of a lack of availability it was because of high cost.

They didn't like it very much when I said I wouldn't consent to having formula and if he needed anything he would have to have Dbm. Thankfully though I wss able to pump enough for him ( and about 6 other babies by the end) but that was only because of domperidone and good advise and the nicu nurses being as pig headed about getting me breastfeeding as I was myself

I think all mums of babies who need a Scbu stay should be offered domperidone, I recon that alone would improve the amount of babies getting a decent amount of their own mothers breastmilk.

As stated on the other thread I am a totally behind this. My local hospital (addenbrokes) is very good both at ebcouraging bf and running the milk bank. but i will certainly speak to them to find out what they do, what they see the issues as etc, as i have a good relationship with the nicu and scbu staff.

Locally to me, in order to start up a milk bank it's been fundraising all the way. There just doesn't seem to be the priority placed on it within neonatal and maternity services, and to me, it's ridiculous that something so important (attatched to a level 3 NICU caring for the most vulnerable infants) has to rely on charity to get started.

In short, I'm in!

Hi organic!

Thanks for kicking this off!

I'm a milk donor. I live near leeds so huffersfield (30miles away) would be my nearest bank. However i started donating when ds was five months and they only accept up to month six. So i donate to chester, who accept up to a year . They come all that way to collect it. But they stop at mine on the way to hull! so clearly are desperate for the stuff.

From here i get the feeling that there are lots of people keen to donate but unable due to logistics.

I think ah makes a really valid point about improving support for bf in hospitals and am trying to get my head round how this fits with our aims (because they are very much my aims too )

I wonder how anyone manages to donate?

I got no response at all when I emailed my nearest bank (with address taken from www.ukamb.org/yourmilkbank.html#london) to volunteer

I'm in!

DD is just 9 months but still EBF and I'm sure I could produce extra if I knew what to do with it afterwards!

I'm in Milton Keynes though and my local maternity unit is in special measures so care and advice is rubbish for even the every day things - I doubt anyone there would have the first clue about breast milk donation!

Just read that the first donation must be within six months of starting breastfeeding so I guess that rules me out as a donator but I'd still like to help with anything else if I can?

I live in South Wales and tried both times to donate, without success due to the lack of proximity of any milk banks.

I think we definitely need more milk banks, and to raise the profile of how (easily) mums can donate if they're already bf and expressing.

I'm in South Wales too and would certainly like to become involed - it's so annoying that there's no milk banks in our country

Yes deemented, but we still have neonatal units.

Do these babies not get bm unless their Mums can express, or where do they ship it in from?

I think its a great idea, my milk never came in at all after the colostrum, would have loved the option to give him bm as apposed to formula.

But what sort of checks are done on the milk, as i am aware that hepatitis can be passed through milk and also HIV and aids? If anyone knows i would be really interested to find out.

When my DS was transferred back to the nicu at our local hospital - he was born over 100 miles away as there was no room for him or his brother - i was told that they dont ship BM in and unless i expressed they would give him formula.

I'll pitch in!

I have actually tried previously to be more involved in raising the profile of UKAMB, I emailed them to ask for promo stuff to give out to anyone I found through my work(NHS 0-19 team and peer support through the BfN) who was interested in donating but I heard nothing back from them. I'll clear it with the relevant managers and will try to get something back from UKAMB.

What are you thinking of OP?

Sorry if I have thrown a spanner in the works MoonFacemama :)

I think special babies mummies need specialist brastfeeding advice and enabling poorly babies to have their own mothers breastmilk should be the absolute aim but my experience when I had my DD ( which was admitedly 5 years ago) tells me that that isn't the case, the Nurses were happier to give her DBM than give me any decent advice because it was less hastle and they were useless. Milk banks shouldn't be used because nurses don't know their arse from their elbow.

Most Mums of poory babies could pump enough for their own baby with decent support and advice and medication if required and then our overstretched milk banks would be able to cope with feeding the babies who's mummies were ill or unwilling.

I threw away a couple of litres of BM when my DS was discharged and a couple of hundred ml of colostrum i'd be saving incase ds got ill but was was about to go out of date and he wouldnt take a bottle..

I Cried :(

OK some answers to some questions:

• To be able to donate, you need to be screened for HIV, Hepatitis, Syphilis and something else I can't recall just now. This is done by a simple blood test which can be taken at your GP. Donated milk is checked for bacterial contamination, and then pasturised.

• organised hospitals without milk banks can get it from a milk bank elsewhere if the milk bank has more than it needs for its own babies. Otherwise formula is the only option where the mother can't provide enough.

• Many milk banks request that donors start before their baby is 6 months. Milk changes after that time, and is less suitable for preemies and neonates. However, >6 month milk is still better than formula, so many will take it if they're short (which they usually are). moon Huddersfield will still take yours. I'm in Wakefield and have confirmed this as I'm organising a local collection "service" (ie me ). Also, mums tend to start to wean at this age and therefore are likely to reduce the amount of milk they make, and the amount they donate, so the milk banks target mums before this to get the most milk possible.

starlight I'm thinking that's a great first start. If we can get a network of collectors together that would mean increasing the amount of milk getting to current milk banks. The next thing is to find hospitals which could accomodate a milk bank and work to get one set up.