Recently India’s first human milk bank turned 30 it was started in Mumbai on November 27,1989.
What is Breast Milk Bank?
- According to the “National Guidelines on Establishment of Lactation Management Centres in Public Health Facilities”, Breast Milk Banks in India are known as Comprehensive Lactation Management Centres (CLMC) and Lactation Management Unit (LMU), depending on the level of health facilities where these units are established
- They are established by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare under National Guidelines on the establishment of Lactation Management Centres in public health facilities
- Lactation Management Centres are in no way intended to lessen the importance of mother’s own milk or the practice of breastfeeding.
- If mother’s own milk is insufficient or not available for any unavoidable reason, Donor Human Milk (DHM) is the next best alternative to bridge the gap.
Definitions
- Comprehensive Lactation Management Centre (CLMC): is a centre at a health facility for the purpose of providing comprehensive lactation support and management for all mothers within the hospital. Facilities for collection, screening, processing, storage and dispensing of donated human milk for babies without access to their own mother’s milk and expression and storage of mother’s own breast milk for the consumption of her baby are available in CLMC.
- Lactation Management Centre (LMC): is a centre established in the health facility for the purpose of providing lactation support to all mothers within the health facility for collection, storage and dispensing of mother’s own breast milk for consumption by her baby.
- Lactation Support Unit: is a centre established in the Sub-district hospital/Community Health Centres/Primary Health Centres (delivery points) for the purpose of promoting and providing lactation support to all mothers within the hospital.
Status of Breastfeeding Practices and Child Mortality in India
Similar initiatives by the government of India
- MAA: “Mother’s Absolute Affection” is a nationwide programme of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in an attempt to bring undiluted focus on the promotion of breastfeeding and provision of counseling services for supporting breastfeeding through health systems.
- Vatsalya- Maatri Amrit Kosh: It is a National Human Milk Bank and Lactation Counselling Centre at the Lady Hardinge Medical College (LHMC). It was established in collaboration with the Norwegian government, Oslo University and Norway India Partnership Initiative (NIPI).
