After the mother pumps the milk, the mother, father, family member, or any healthcare provider who is educated about the technique may label the milk containers with the mother’s name, infant’s first and last name, date and time pumped, and list of medications mother has taken in previous 24 hours.
Only staff members may access the storage refrigerator/freezer to deposit or retrieve milk.
Two persons must verify that the correct milk is to be fed to the correct infant. Any healthcare provider who is educated about the technique may verify; a family member may serve as the double check. The registered nurse (RN) is to read aloud the information on the infant’s ID bracelet while person double checking reads the label on the bottle and verifies the baby’s and mother’s names.
Each mother-infant dyad should be educated, encouraged, and supported to breast-feed or to provide mother’s milk, even in situations of illness, prematurity, hospitalization, or separation.
Maternal contraindications to providing mother’s milk in developed countries are few: positive HIV status, untreated tuberculosis, positive HTLV (human T-lymphoma virus), or active use of illicit drugs or pharmaceuticals that are contraindicated for breastfeeding.
In situations where the infant is unable to breastfeed, expressed mother’s milk should be safely stored for use.
Donor human milk from a recognized human milk bank is a viable alternative for the mother who is unable to supply her own milk to her infant or child.
Refrigerators and freezers for storing human milk should be labeled “For Human Milk Storage.” Human milk is not a biologic hazard, and refrigerators and freezers need not be labeled as such.
Refrigerators must be kept at 33° to 39.2°F (>0° to ≤4°C). Freezers must be kept at -4°F (-20°C) or lower.
Refrigerators and freezers for storing human milk should be on emergency power circuits to prevent warming of milk to room temperature for greater than 4 hours or thawing and refreezing during power outages.
Refrigerators and freezers storing human milk should have temperature alarms or a designated staff member must be responsible for documenting appropriate temperatures once every 24 hours.
Refrigerator/freezer or stand-alone units labeled for human milk storage
Emergency power circuits for the refrigerator/freezer units
Thermometer for checking refrigerator/freezer temperatures
Individual storage bins or, for small quantities, gallon Zip-lock bags
Clean food grade (hard) polypropylene plastic or glass containers
Documented assessment of breastfeeding effectiveness, by a medical professional trained in formal assessment of breastfeeding, should be performed at least once during the 8 hours preceding discharge of the mother and baby.
Assess mother’s need for education, equipment, and support related to breastfeeding or pumping and storage of her milk.
Instruct each mother in appropriate hand hygiene and pump kit cleaning procedures to reduce risk of contamination of pumped milk, storage containers, and pumping kits. Human milk is not a sterile product, so sterile handling is not required. Teach the
mother to clean all parts of the pump kit that come in contact with human milk after use with warm, soapy water, then rinsing thoroughly.
Provide a comfortable private area where mother can breast-feed her infant or pump her milk.
Provide guidelines for pumping and storage of mother’s milk at your facility.
Use board-certified lactation consultants as resources within your setting for education, support, and assistance with special needs.
PROCEDUREHuman Milk Storage in the Hospital Setting
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