Breast Milk Bank Launches In Kenya

Human Milk
Photo source: theconversation

Breast milk bank opens in Kenya at Pumwani Maternity Hospital. The first in East Africa and the second in Africa. South Africa is the first African country to launch a human milk bank - An applaudable initiative.

To achieve a successful milk bank, a committee was set-up to research and stragedies on how human milk bank will work in Kenya. The team were sent to South Africa to learn more about the human milk banking process. Finally, local strategies were developed and implemented. Good cause!
Human milk reserves collect, pasteurise, test, store, aend distribute donated breastmilk according to needs.

Adequate screening and quality control are strictly implemented as diseases could be passed to children through breastmilk. The Standard of Procedure starts with screening and recruiting donors who must be healthy mothers with surplus milk beyond the needs of their own child. Donors must undergo health checks including tests that screen for HIV, syphilis and hepatitis B and C .

Donors must then express milk in hygienic conditions, after which the milk is pasteurised. This involves heating the milk in a water bath at 62.5°c for 30 minutes followed by rapid cooling.

The milk is frozen and stored at -20°C. When needed, it is thawed to room temperature and issued to children who do not have access to their own mothers' milk. A prescription by a qualified health professional is needed for this.