JACKSONVILLE MEMORIAL HOSPITAL BECOMES BREAST MILK DONATION REPOSITORY

JACKSONVILLE, Ill. — Jacksonville Memorial Hospital has become an official repository for Mothers’ Milk Bank of the Western Great Lakes, giving breastfeeding mothers in the region a local location to donate surplus breast milk.

The donated milk is intended for premature and medically fragile infants who may benefit from human milk when a mother’s own supply is unavailable or insufficient. Hospital officials say donor milk can help reduce complications for vulnerable newborns, including babies at risk for serious intestinal disease.

The donation process includes screening and testing designed to protect recipients. Milk is tested before and after pasteurization, and donors go through a screening process intended to identify medical or medication issues that could affect the safety of donated milk.

Hospital staff say the new repository is also intended to make the process easier for local mothers who produce more milk than their own babies need. Jacksonville Memorial hopes the partnership will eventually help expand access to donor milk and other lactation resources in the Jacksonville area.