While no day looks the same at The Milk Bank, no matter what I’m doing I am helping moms and babies. Follow me on a day which I’m affectionately calling, From Milk Depots to Train Depots! *Well, it was a former train depot but we’ll get to that!
I was recently invited to celebrate the grand opening of The Mercy Washington Milk Depot – the first depot in its county. The event was a tie in with a community program called “Weigh In Wednesday.” Weigh In Wednesday is, at its simplest, an opportunity for parents and caregivers to bring their infants and babies to the hospital to be weighed. But there is so much more available! Mercy staff weigh the babies before and after feeding, answer questions and troubleshoot any breastfeeding issues the baby or parent – or both – may be experiencing, consult on bottle feeding questions and offer tips and encouragement for keeping the babies healthy!
The Depot opening was a wonderful reason to have a party so the Mercy staff made it a Halloween theme! Along with the standard services, the event I attended had cookies, balloons, pumpkins in Halloween costumes (including pumpkins pumping breast milk – aka “pump-kins”). Over the course of a couple hours, more than a dozen parents and babies stopped by. Parents and caregivers are encouraged to bring their babies as often and as many times as they want, along with any other children in their care.
Being at the event meant I was able to answer questions about The Milk Bank and learn more about the community. I was able to talk in depth about our donor process, our lab, my outreach in Missouri, and how Pasteurized Donor Human Milk is a medical intervention for NICU babies.
I was also extremely grateful to be able to thank donors in person for their lifesaving gift. All this and adorable babies!
Bringing Awareness to Public Health Advocates
Energized and with a bit of a sugar high from the cookies, I headed out for Union Station (*a former train depot!) in St. Louis for the Missouri Hospital Association Convention. This convention served as an invaluable opportunity to delve into statewide maternal and infant care programs, network with healthcare professionals and educational partners across Missouri, and devise strategies to fortify and expand The Milk Bank’s initiatives in the state.
Throughout the conference, I gained insights into the challenges faced by pregnant patients in regions without birthing hospitals and learned about the innovative solutions proposed by healthcare experts. Together with the Clinical Director of The Milk Bank, we were able to provide education to medical practitioners and their staff on the importance of offering a human milk program in their facilities and how critical it is to help bring awareness about the importance of milk donation! Go to this link to get screened to be a milk donor.
Meeting parents, babies, and donors, and seeing the excitement and eagerness in their eyes as they learned about The Milk Bank’s mission is heartwarming. The opportunity to bring that energy directly to MHA members and share how they can implement The Milk Bank’s programs in their facilities, to turn a donor’s gift into practice, was a truly remarkable experience.
Closing
Spending a day out in the community, meetings babies and parents and connecting with decision makers, is only one part of my role in fulfilling The Milk Bank’s mission. Building out partnerships and supporting healthcare providers with educational materials are crucial to our mission and is a big part of the more day-to-day aspects of my work.
Since the Milk Depot in my story opened, nine Milk Donors have donated over 12,800 ounces! That represents an amazing 38,400 feedings for fragile NICU babies!