First Responders

First Responders are crucial in helping to preserve and protect

lactation during emergencies and disasters

Human milk reduces the risk of morbidity and premature mortality. Its effect is even stronger in emergency and disaster situations in which the infant/child can benefit from immune protection and optimal nutrition in times of stress and suboptimal living conditions. In addition, lactating parents who do not remove milk regularly can develop breast inflammation, infection, become ill and quickly lose their milk supply.

Help families maintain lactation by:

• Assess the family’s needs using the rapid assessment below

• Creating a safe space for parents to breast/chestfeed/express milk

• Keep families together

• Encourage parents to continue to breastfeed frequently to maintain milk supply

• Reassure them that their milk is best

• Protect them from offers of formula (if they were not previously using it) from those who are well-meaning, but uninformed

• Offer extra food and water to the lactating parent

• If parents need to express milk due to separation from their child or one that won’t latch show them HAND EXPRESSION information here.

• If conditions are not sanitary, encourage cup feeding rather than bottles/nipples to reduce risk of illness: CUP FEEDING

• Even infants used to drinking their parent’s pumped milk by bottle may be able to breastfeed using the “drip drop” method.

• If formula is necessary, ready-to-feed liquid formula is best, followed by powdered formula made with bottled water. See formula preparation guidelines here. Babies under three months and those with weakened immune systems should have hot water added to formula to sterilize it if possible.

• Access Pump and Bottle/Cup/Nipple Cleaning guidelines to share

reFer STruggling families to a Lactation Specialist