JACKSON, Mich. – The Henry Ford breast milk donor bank in Jackson has received accreditation and is accepting applications from human milk donors.
The goal of the milk bank is to deliver safe, pasteurized milk to infants in the Henry Ford Jackson Hospital Donor milk will first go to infants in Henry Ford hospitals as they work to build a supply of milk. As the supply increases they will make the milk available to outpatients with a prescription.
The staff delivered their first batch of human donor breast milk to the hospital on Friday after completing the Human Milk Banking Association of North America accreditation process.
This is the second human donor milk bank in Michigan. According to a press release, there are only 30 other accredited milk banks in the United States. Eight of those are affiliated with a hospital or health system.
In cases when a parent would like to breastfeed, but can’t, health officials recommend using donor human milk as an alternative. Breast milk has many benefits including reducing the risk of SIDs. Henry Ford Health said babies who consume breast milk are less like to have earaches, stomachaches and colds or develop chronic illnesses including obesity, asthma and diabetes.
The milk bank has the ability to process around 1,000 ounces of donor milk per day. After the milk is received, staff pool and pasteurize milk in a processing facility. The process eliminates harmful bacteria or other potential infecting organisms.
How can someone donate milk?
The potential donor has to meet certain criteria to qualify. Donors are not paid.
- They have to be a non-smoker.
- Consume limited amounts of alcohol.
- Have approval from their doctor.
- Be willing to donate at least 100 ounces of breastmilk.
- Undergo a screening process.
- Have labs drawn (which will be paid for by the milk bank).
When a donor passes the screening process, they can drop their milk off at the milk bank in Jackson or work with staff to ship their frozen milk.
The milk bank is located at 200 S. East Avenue in Jackson, Michigan.
People who want to donate their breast milk can reach out to the Henry Ford Milk Bank at milkbank@hfhs.org.