Milk bank looking for donors to provide milk for NICU babies
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (WKRN) — If you are looking for fresh breast milk, then Dr. Susan Campbell is the woman to see.
For over 30 years, she worked with premature babies as a neonatologist when she soon learned something important.
“We were seeing that babies in the NICU that were really tiny were having difficulty with artificial feedings,” she said.
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Premature babies she saw drinking human milk seemed to thrive.
“Moms know the importance of breast milk for their own babies,” said Campbell. “They don’t realize that the extra that’s just tucked away in their freezer could save other babies’ lives.”
So in 2021, Campbell decided to open Mothers’ Milkbank of Tennessee.
This facility is the only milk bank in the state that provides pasteurized donor human milk to NICUs.
“The more babies that are being born, the sicker the babies are, the more supply we need,” said Jason Parker. “It’s currently outpacing our demand.”
Parker has spent the last 10 years working as a neonatologist at Ascension Saint Thomas Rutherford.
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The hospital is one of the 16 Mothers’ Milkbank of Tennessee services.
“We have milk from the milk bank everyday,” said Parker. “We order it in supplies to last a few days so we don’t get the milk every day, but we use that milk every single day that babies are in here.”
Parker has not only watched the demand grow, but also can speak to the benefits it’s having on his tiniest patients.
“They develop and do better, digest better, grow better, [and have] better neurodevelopment on mama’s milk,” he said.
In 2023, Campbell said they provided nearly 140,000 ounces of milk to NICUs across the state, and feels proud of the work they are doing.
“This is amazing to think that I can still make a difference and spread it all over the whole state,” she said. “When I worked [as a neonatologist], I was confined to a certain group of hospitals, but now I’m helping all the babies.”
Campbell hopes mothers with just a little extra milk will consider helping these babies, too.
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“Just one mom finding out and bringing in a couple thousand ounces of milk is going to make a huge, huge difference,” said Campbell. “She’s going to feed a lot of these little tiny babies.”
There’s currently 16 milk depots across Tennessee where mothers can donate their excess breast milk.
Those looking to become a donor can find more information on how to do so here.
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