Charlotte hospital debuts milk donor depot benefitting NICU babies

CHARLOTTE ( QUEEN CITY NEWS ) — Uptown Charlotte’s Novant Presbyterian is now one of five hospitals across North Carolina accepting human milk donations for NICU babies that are in need, the healthcare company announced this month.

“Novant Health is honored to serve as the only donor human milk bank in the Charlotte area. By establishing ourselves as a central drop-off site, our hope is to reduce the expense of donor human milk in North Carolina and increase accessibility for newborns in need. We are grateful to both NCDHHS and WakeMed Mothers’ Milk Bank for their partnership.”

While Novant said there can be challenges to breastfeeding in the NICU, 250 babies on average are born preterm each week in North Carolina, according to March of Dimes.

Frozen donations can be brought to Novant Health where they are sterilized, stored, and transported to a milk bank in Raleigh before wider distribution.

Novant said there are less than 30 donor milk banks in the entire country.

Donations can be made by appointment.

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