Milk Drops Are Changing Family Bonding at East Tennessee Children's Hospital
The milk drops program, an evidence-based practice, is simple yet effective.
World Breastfeeding Week is in August and East Tennessee Children's Hospital understands the physical and psychological importance of breastfeeding for mothers and babies.
There are many benefits to breastfeeding, including protecting your child from some short- and long-term illnesses and diseases, a great source of nutrition for a baby’s needs, helping develop a strong immune system and reducing the mother’s risk of breast and ovarian cancer. However, East Tennessee Children’s Hospital understands that breastfeeding is not always an option for every mother and child and is here to help.
Children’s Hospital has one of the largest Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICU) in the area and treats over 1,000 patients every year. Many of the babies in the NICU were born before their due date, have breathing problems, neonatal abstinence syndrome or congenital birth defects. Because of this, many are not able to traditionally feed.
“Family bonding is so important. The private rooms in our NICU provide a peaceful environment where caretakers can provide the stimuli their baby needs,” says Dr. Malinda Harris, Neonatologist and Medical Director of the NICU at Children’s Hospital.
East Tennessee Children's Hospital is taking care of our future, one child at a time.
Part of this bonding and stimuli for a baby is breastfeeding. Mothers with children in the NICU are encouraged to pump, if they wish, even if their child is unable to breastfeed. However, since many babies are unable to latch or fed through a feeding tube, mothers become discouraged or struggle to provide breastmilk. Dr. Harris and the NICU task force at Children’s Hospital saw this become a struggle for many mothers, so they put their heads together to come up with a solution.
“We were worried the babies weren’t getting the positive stimulation that we wanted in their mouths since the first few weeks of their life can include negative experiences, such as secretion being sucked out of the mouth or needing a breathing tube. We also wanted to encourage our moms who are pumping and working so hard to continue to produce breast milk,” says Dr. Harris.
Since starting this program, Children’s Hospital has seen improved parent experience.
With the help of a strong nutrition task force, the milk drops program was introduced to the hospital. Children’s Hospital was hopeful after seeing a group in Iowa do a similar practice and had seen success in babies who were more interested in eating once it came time for them to breastfeed or bottle feed. “We felt like this was something we should provide for our families, especially for the babies. It also gave the parents another area to bond and way to assist with care.”
The milk drops program, an evidence-based practice, is simple yet effective. It begins with mom pumping breastmilk which is then sent to the milk lab. The mother’s milk is then brought back during each feeding time. The milk is put into a syringe and the baby’s caretaker puts a few drops into the baby’s mouth, depending on their interest. If the baby is not interested, the drops are stopped and tried again at the next feeding. If the baby is enjoying it, they baby will get the remaining drops in the syringe, depending on their gestational age and clinical status. Since starting this program, Children’s Hospital has seen improved parent experience from the standpoint of bonding, increased breastfeeding rates, babies who are feeding by the mouth faster and more successful first feedings.
Children’s Hospital has an array of feeding resources available to parents.
“Our goal is for the baby to be able to smell, taste and feel the sensation of having that milk in their mouth. Psychologically, it does all the great things breast milk does. We also do a little cotton round, similar to what you’d use to remove makeup, that we provide for the families to put against their skin. The round goes in the bed with the baby at the same time as the milk drops. It gives the whole sensation like if they were being fed at the breast with their mother or in the lap of their father.”
This is just one of many ways you can feed your baby. Children’s Hospital has an array of feeding resources available to parents. You can learn more by visiting The KidsHealth Library on our website. East Tennessee Children’s Hospital is taking care of our future, one child at a time. With your help, they can continue to provide state-of-the-art care from the smallest of patients in the NICU to young adolescents. If you’d like to learn more about how you can get involved, visit etch.com/ways-to-give/.
