Columbus Regional Health is pleased to increase its breastfeeding support and breast milk supply services through an expanded partnership with The Milk Bank by becoming an official Milk Express site.
Columbus Regional Health’s Birthing Center currently uses Pasteurized Donor Milk from The Milk Bank, especially for high-risk inpatient infants because pasteurized donor breast milk offers ideal nutrition for some of our tiniest and most fragile population. Opening May 9, 2023, as a new Milk Express site, CRH is pleased to be able to dispense donor milk that any families have purchased online through the Milk Bank. Express sites are convenient, community-based locations where families can pick up Pasteurized Donor Human Milk ordered from The Milk Bank.
“Donor milk and The Milk Bank are near and dear to my heart. As a first-time mom who used donor milk for my twins, I have deep appreciation for anyone who becomes a milk donor,” said CRH Women’s and Children’s Services Lactation Consultant Sarah Bringman RN, BSN, IBCLC.
The Milk Express site is located at the Columbus Regional Health Birthing Center. Families may order up to 40 ounces of Pasteurized Donor Human Milk without a prescription. Parents interested in purchasing pasteurized donor human milk should visit The Milk Bank to complete an intake form. Orders can be picked up Monday-Friday, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Appointments may be made for afterhours and weekends by calling the Birthing Center at 812.376.5212. ext. 8901. Ask for lactation to schedule an appointment for pick up. Approved donors can also drop off breast milk at this site. Start the process to become a donor at www.themilkbank.org/donate-milk.
About The Milk Bank and CRH Milk Depot and Express program
The Milk Bank, a national non-profit, receives human milk from carefully screened donors to pasteurize, freeze and distribute throughout the United States. The organization provides safe donor milk as a medical treatment, to bridge a gap, or to help meet breastfeeding goals. Donor milk is a preferred feeding source for premature infants or for when a mother’s own milk is not available. Human milk strengthens the baby's immune system and may help babies fight disease and infection. The Milk Bank tests, analyzes, and pasteurizes the milk before dispensing to hospitals and outpatient families. For more than eight years, Columbus Regional Health has been a donation site for The Milk Bank’s approved donors. More than 65,540 ounces have been donated through the CRH Milk Depot.
