Mother’s own milk is the best source of nutrition for babies who are born very preterm, yet the factors that contribute to early birth can also make it challenging for mothers to produce enough breast milk in their baby’s first days of life. When sufficient maternal milk is not available, the World Health Organization recommends pasteurised donor human milk (donor milk) as the next best option to reduce the risk of necrotising enterocolitis, a serious and often fatal gut disease.
There are now more than 700 human milk banks operating worldwide to provide safe donor milk, primarily to hospitalised infants. Similar to blood and other clinical tissue donation programs, milk donors undergo strict screening and must meet eligibility criteria. Human milk donation is unique, however, in that it involves considering the well-being of at least three individuals: the donor, her own child, and the infant(s) who will receive the milk. The donation process is also unique, with donors expressing and storing milk for donation over weeks or months, often in their own home.
Australian Red Cross Lifeblood’s Milk service began in 2018 to increase access to donor milk in Australia. Since then, over 2,000 women have generously donated breast milk to Lifeblood. This presentation shares how we are using both quantitative research to understand who donates breast milk in Australia and qualitative research to understand our donors’ experiences. Our focus is on collaborative projects that can be translated to improve and support the sustainability of our donor milk service.