Franciscan Health Dyer is collaborating with The Milk Bank to become both a donation site and pick-up location for outpatient families.

These programs increase access to safe human milk for fragile infants both in and out of the hospital.

The Milk Bank, a non-profit milk bank headquartered in Indianapolis, receives donations of extra human milk from carefully screened donors. In their milk lab, donations are nutritionally analyzed, bottled and pasteurized before being dispensed to hospitals and outpatients.

The new Milk Depot at the Franciscan Health Family Birth Center Dyer makes milk donation convenient for The Milk Bank’s approved donors.

Franciscan Health Dyer uses pasteurized donor human milk for its fragile patients. The partnership’s Milk Express program provides quick access to orders of pasteurized donor human milk for families at home.

“The Franciscan Health Family Birth Center Dyer is thrilled to be able to partner with The Milk Bank on this important project for the families and infants we are blessed to serve,” said Franciscan Health Family Birth Center Dyer and Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Nurse Manager Ashley Garza, MSN, RN. “The human milk provided will truly make a difference in the health and well-being of those receiving it. We thank everyone involved in this effort for their support.”

Many families want to provide human milk for their infants but are unable to for a variety of reasons including adoption, premature birth, illness or absence from the mother or formula intolerance. At the same time, many women who have lost infants after childbirth find it helps with the grieving process to donate breast milk to families in need while other mothers simply want to help other babies thrive after their own have stopped nursing.

Multiple studies have found infants who are fed human milk have significant health benefits over babies who are fed formula, including stronger immune systems.

Babies who are fed breast milk have reduced instances of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), are less likely to develop childhood leukemia, middle ear infections and respiratory infections and are less likely to have childhood obesity as well as type 1 and type 2 diabetes. The melatonin in human milk also helps babies sleep better than their formula-fed counterparts.

Lactating mothers wishing to donate breast milk must first be approved through The Milk Bank. Screening is available online at https://www.themilkbank.org/donate-milk/.

Those interested in receiving pasteurized donor human milk for their infant through the Milk Express program can complete the intake form online at https://www.themilkbank.org/milk-express, pay the processing fee and choose Franciscan Health Dyer as their pick up location.

For more information on these and other programs and services, please call the Franciscan Health Dyer Family Birth Center at (219) 515-3993.