Breast milk bank Love in a plastic bottle - the story of the Eastern Cape's breast milk reserve bank

The neo-natal intensive care unit at Uitenhage's Cuyler Hospital is a very quiet place. Even the happy storybook characters on the walls are painted in mute pastels. No cellphones are allowed. The lights are dim and the ward is warm. Everybody speaks softly.

Saved 'It has meant so much to me'

Since Jacolise Britz had her twins 16 sixteen weeks too early in June this year, she has been watching the desperate fight to keep her one surviving baby alive - and mostly thanks to donated breast milk the little girl has already almost doubled her birth weight.

Spread the love 'It is something only new mommies can do'

Naomi Mitchell doesn't look like a woman who had donated 450 litres of breast milk to help premature babies. Tiny, unassuming she brings a little sparkle to the quite neo-natal intensive care unit with her twinkly smile and happy children.

Breast milk bank How it works

Oelofse and her team will deliver plastic bottles and special caps to mothers who are willing to donate their breastmilk.

Breast milk bank When do mothers need assistance?

hose with babies born too early are most in need: "Premature birth is an unplanned, traumatic event for most mothers," Breast Milk Reserve Bank manager Anne-Marie Oelofse said.

Breast milk bank How to benefit from the breast milk bank

Sister Annemarie Oelofse, the manager of the Breast Milk Reserve Bank, explains how the process works.