'Empowering for moms.' Cape Cod Hospital launches first donor milk bank on Cape Cod

On Jan. 24, Cape Cod Hospital became an official donor milk depot − the first on Cape Cod − in partnership with Mothers’ Milk Bank Northeast.

This program, said Heather Lakatos, a registered nurse and board-certified (IBCLC) lactation consultant, “makes it possible for moms to donate breast milk, and it goes back into the community for our babies.”

There are 32 accredited non-profit milk banks in the United States and Canada, according to Jennifer Lacasse, Director of Women’s Healthcare Services for Cape Cod Healthcare.

Mothers’ Milk Bank Northeast serves more than 100 hospitals in 12 states annually, as well as outpatient families that need small amounts of "bridge milk" while their own milk supply is developing in the postpartum period. This equates to more than 1.5 million feedings for infants of various ages, according to Kylia Garver, the organization’s Director of Hospital Relations and Community Education.

However, there are only seven milk depot locations in Massachusetts, the closest one to the Cape being in South Weymouth.

“We know the importance of breast milk for babies, so it was a logical next step to take,” said Lacasse.

The hospital’s telephone “lactation warm line” has received several calls every year from mothers on Cape Cod asking if there was a place to donate their milk, said Lakatos.

“A lot of mothers were not aware that they could do this,” said Lakatos.

How to donate breast milk to Cape Cod Hospital

Women with babies under a year old may donate their breast milk to Cape Cod Hospital.

The women who donate fill out a comprehensive donation form, and have bloodwork done to determine if those who donate are taking any medications or have any other health issues that may affect the quality of the milk.

The donated milk must be frozen.

The first donation must be at least 150 ounces, and subsequent donations must be 100 ounces.

The milk is then screened to make sure it is healthy, and it is pasteurized and processed and pooled with the milk of five different mothers combined to be distributed to babies and mothers who need it.

Who gets the donated milk?

The hospital at this time is simply a collector, or depot, for the milk, explained Lacasse and sends it to Mothers’ Milk Bank Northeast, which serves all of New England.

“It is sent to various neonatal intensive care units and hospitals,” said Lakatos. “The best breastmilk is for our smallest preterm babies. Preterm babies are more at risk.”

“The sickest babies get the milk first,” said Lacasse.

A number of other factors also determine which babies receive the milk from the milk bank, such as if the mother cannot produce breast milk and a variety of other situations that are “medically indicated,” said Lakatos.

While "medically fragile" babies are prioritized, a press release from Cape Cod Healthcare said, donations can be used for full-term healthy babies, as well.

For some time now, the hospital’s lactation team, which consists of Lakatos, Diane Robertson Milliken, and Melissa Calhoun, all registered nurses and board-certified lactation consultants, has been working to promote breastfeeding because of its health benefits.

“It is very empowering for moms to say they provided that level of care,” said Lakatos. “Our breastfeeding rate upon discharge is 90%, among the highest numbers in the state.”

“We do a good job,” said Lacasse. “People come from all over, near and far, to access our breastfeeding team.”

Cape Cod Hospital plans to develop its own milk bank sometime in the future.

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This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Cape Cod's first breast milk bank is open: How to donate, who can use