MMMHMC welcomes moms, babies to new milk bank

HUMAN MILK BANK. The medical personnel of the human milk bank of Mariano Marcos Memorial Hospital and Medical Center processes a 10-liter donated human milk on Dec. 28, 2020. The first of its kind in the Ilocos region, the facility is established for the purpose of ensuring that babies, particularly those born prematurely and are undernourished, will have immediate access to breast milk. Photo courtesy of Mariano Marcos Memorial Hospital and Medical Center.

City of BATAC—Newborn babies here will no longer lack of safe breast milk as the first human milk bank (HMB) in Ilocos Region is now open in the biggest public hospital in Ilocos Norte.

More than two years in the making, the HMB in Mariano Marcos Memorial Hospital and Medical Center (MMMH&MC) here was established to aid in the nutrition and protection of babies especially those who are born prematurely and undernourished.

In a country often plagued by natural disasters, HMBs also play a vital role in ensuring that babies in evacuation sites are given the safest food through pasteurized donor human milk by assisting mothers struggling to breastfeed their children in areas mostly affected by disasters, said HMB program coordinator Dr. Rocamia Fermin.

The establishment of the HMB is a part of MMMH&MC’s commitment to strengthen its recognition by the Department of Health as a “Mother-Baby Friendly Hospital” in recent years.

In a statement, HMB adviser Dr. Maria Paz Virginia K. Otayza said that the facility is open not only to Ilocos Norte residents but also to others who live in neighboring provinces such as Cagayan, Ilocos Sur, and Abra.

“All the milk that is going to be collected will come from the donation of [lactating] mothers who have more than the usual volume of milk for their own child,” Otayza said as she underscored the importance of community support to the full operation of the facility.

The HMB here is fully equipped with a pasteurizer, large bio-refrigerator, hospital grade breast pumps, milk analyzers, mixers and dispensers, sterilizers, freezers, and medical refrigerators and is operated following the guidelines set by the World Health Organization.

Mothers who give birth at MMMH&MC as well as walk-ins can be accommodated to donate milk, according to milk bank nurse Juvilyn Caroy.

She noted that mothers should do so within a period of six months after giving birth and that they must undergo a screening to check if they are fit to donate.

For walk-ins, a doctor’s prescription, medical abstract, and an ice-box cooler storage are needed to be carried by those who wish to get a milk supply at the facility. A minimal fee will be charged for the processing of the milk.

Once processed by HMB, the donated milk can have a shelf life from six to nine months, according to Caroy. (John Michael Mugas)