IT HELPS hundreds of babies across Ireland each year, and now the SWAH-based Human Milk Bank has issued a fresh appeal for donor mums to help it continue it’s life-saving work.
The only one of its kind on the island of Ireland, the team at the Western Trust run facility, which provides breast milk to neonatal units right across the island, has supported thousands of premature and sick babies in recent years.
Over the past year the Human Milk Bank has 973 litres of donor breast milk to 31 maternity/neonatal units across 27 hospitals throughout Ireland. It has provided this precious and live-saving donor milk to 773 premature babies, of which 233 were either a twin or a triplet.
Susan Rogers, lead nurse for public health at the Trust, thanked all those who donate to the Milk Bank.
“We are indebted to our donor mums who have continued to provide essential donor breast milk for babies in neonatal and surgical units in hospitals throughout the whole of Ireland,” she said.
“The Human Milk Bank staff are working very hard to ensure this vital service remains available to all our vulnerable premature and surgical babies as the demand for donor expressed breast milk at this time is exceptionally high.”
Ms Rogers said demand for the service remained as high as ever, and urged any mothers who were able to donate to the life-saving service.
“Breast milk gives premature and sick babies the best possible start in life as it helps build their immune system, their eye and brain development and prevent Necrotising Enterocolitis (NEC), which is a devastating intestinal disease affecting premature or low birth weight babies,” she said.
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