Quick! Need info on what do to if you find a milk donor that you don't know

[GISDiva]

OK, so I may have found a couple of milk donors. What I need is those who have experience getting milk from people they don't know. What questions do you ask? Are there any precautions? How do we go about this?

Thanks!!

[svmaine]

Well there's what you should do and then there's what you have the patience/money/time to do...

All my donated milk has come from women that were on MDC or clients of a local midwife. You should get doctor's notes saying they tested negative for HIV and Hepatitis and if they haven't been tested then you should offer to pay for their testing. In reality, I have asked my donors and they all said they had been tested and would look for the paperwork. Out of 5 donors I think I received some paperwork from 1. It's tough because on the one hand you understand the work involved in the donation and don't want to put anything more on the saint of a mom, however you also don't want to passing on anything life-threatening to your precious baby!! So my compromise was to talk to my donors, if they knew that 100% they had been tested and would try to find the notes, then I felt trusting enough to accept their milk.

I'd love to find out what other recipients have done.
Good luck!

[MaryJaneLouise]

Here's some suggestions from milkshare:

http://milkshare.birthingforlife.com/donorscreening

[california_mom]

As a donor, I chose to not go thru a milkbank because of the tests and forms to do.

As part of my prenatal screening by my OB, I had the Hep B test done, but not HIV (is that weird?). I did have a blood donor card (I give blood regularly) and since they test for HIV, that seemed to be enough for the recipients. I was more than willing to provide all the test results that had already been done by my doctor.

Honestly, I probably wouldn't have gone for more blood tests had the recipients asked. It would be too time consuming. I don't have a baby sitter (nor would I want to leave my ds with someone at this point unless it was my dh) and the nearest place to get tested is 20 miles away. (Though if the lab is open on Saturdays, that might make getting tested easier.)

Having said that, do what make YOU feel comfortable. I know if I were on the receiving end, I wouldn't want to worry about whether the bm is disease-free.

Good luck.

[DocsNemesis]

Yeah, I'd ask to make sure they had no HIV/Hep B or anything else that could be spread through breastmilk. Beyond that, you have to trust the donor to tell you the truth. I like to know what meds they are on, if they do any drugs, if they drink caffiene on a regular basis, and then of course, if you have a baby with an allergy, you have to try to stear clear of milk with that allergin in it. So far, every donor I've talked to has been very open and honest-including admitting to occasional pot use or using an anti depressant or something similar. I think most women who attempt to donate are really doing so for the sake of the babies and to try and help and the last thing they want to do is harm another child.