Lactating parents on the North Island will soon have a new way to help some of B.C.’s most vulnerable infants.
Island Health says the Campbell River Health Unit will become an official donor milk collection depot for BC Women’s Provincial Milk Bank starting October 27.
Screened donors can drop off frozen breast milk Monday to Wednesday, between 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. The milk is sent to BC Women’s Hospital in Vancouver, where it’s pasteurized and distributed to neonatal and pediatric units across the province.
Island Health’s Carolyn Hutton says donor milk can be lifesaving for premature and medically fragile babies, providing antibodies to fight infection.
The new depot joins others in Victoria and Nanaimo, which together have collected more than 3,600 litres since 2016.
For donation details, visit BC Women’s Hospital’s website.
– Article features information from BC Women’s Hospital and image supplied by Island Health
