OhioHealth Mothers’ Milk Bank Opens New Milk Dispensary at Wooster Community Hospital
The OhioHealth Mothers’ Milk Bank celebrated the grand opening of a new milk dispensary, located at Wooster Community Hospital, on Wednesday Oct. 16. The new milk dispensary, located at 1761 Beall Avenue in Wooster, allows local families with a prescription to pick up pasteurized human milk for their infants.
Wooster Community Hospital is already a milk drop for the OhioHealth Mothers’ Milk Bank accepting donations of milk from approved donors, to be transferred to the milk bank in Columbus, for processing, at no cost to the donor. This is the third site in Ohio where pasteurized donor milk can be obtained, with a prescription and also approved donors can drop off their milk.
The OhioHealth Mothers’ Milk Bank, under the guidelines of the Human Milk Banking Association of North America (HMBANA), provides pasteurized human milk to those infants whose mothers are unable to provide enough milk for their babies. It is one of just
33 milk banks in North America – 30 in the United States and three in Canada.
“We are thrilled to be opening this new milk dispensary for easier access to pasteurized human milk to families in the Wooster area,” said Chris Smith, RN, IBCLC, outreach coordinator and lactation consultant at the milk bank. “With this new milk dispensary, families with a prescription for pasteurized human milk, as a supplement to mom’s own milk, can conveniently obtain milk and receive breastfeeding help all in one stop.”
“We established a partnership with the milk bank in 2021 which allowed us to provide pasteurized human milk to our inpatients and become a milk drop site. Now we are delighted to once again partner with them on our milk dispensary” said Kirstin Fortune APRN-CNP of Bloomington Breastfeeding Care and Tara Gravatt RN, Lactation Program Coordinator at Wooster Community Hospital. “We are so excited to be able to provide pasteurized human milk on an outpatient basis to help maintain exclusive breastfeeding. This will allow families in our community options when supplementation is medically indicated.”
The milk bank, which is in OhioHealth Eastside Health Center in Columbus, relies on donations from healthy, lactating women who generously provide milk to help other babies. Interested donors are encouraged to email milkbank@ohiohealth.com or call 614.566.0630 to arrange a screening phone interview. To become a human milk donor, mothers must take part in a screening process to ensure the quality and safety of the milk. This process includes a phone screening to verify eligibility, completion of a medical and lifestyle history review, a signed medical release from the donor and physician and consent to receive a blood test to screen for HIV, HTLV, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C and syphilis. The donated milk is pasteurized, frozen and distributed by physician prescription.
Benefits of Breast Milk
Infants benefit greatly from human milk, especially those who are premature, ill, or have life- threatening conditions. Human milk is the ultimate source of nutrients and immune protection for infants. Babies benefit from the active growth hormones, developmental enzymes, infection fighting and immunological factors found in human milk. Research shows that human milk helps pre-term infants:
• Reach full feeds sooner and need fewer IVs
• Mature their intestines faster
• Spend fewer days in the hospital
• Reduce risk of necrotizing enterocolitis (a potentially fatal bowel infection)
• Reduce risk of sepsis (blood infection) and fewer infections
• Experience long-term IQ advantages over formula-fed infants
• Be healthier as older children and adults
More information about the OhioHealth Mothers’ Milk Bank, including a video, may be found at
https://www.ohiohealth.com/locations/womens-health/mothers-milk-bank/
