Information for moms who want to pump at work

A new mom recently asked about pumping at work. I thought others might have questions about this as well. 

Yes, there is a lactation room--in EPN. You need to contact the NIH Lactation program in order to reserve a time slot: http://dohs.ors.od.nih.gov/lactation_guidelines.htm.

I pumped 3xday for 20 minutes—took 30 min start to finish with set up and everything. To save time, I didn’t wash the pump parts between pumping—I put everything in the fridge and just used it again for the next session. I stored the milk in the fridge on the 8^th floor (in a lunch box).

Bring a picture of the baby with you—of course. Thinking about her will help you get more out. Expect that your first session of the day will yield more than the next two. It’s fine to combine milk from different pumping sessions to give her the next day. Breast milk can be at room temperature for 8 hrs—amazing antimicrobial properties!

Watch this video for ideas on how to maximize production. http://www.google.com/search?q=stanford+pumping+video&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a

The Breastfeeding Center of DC is another great resource. http://www.breastfeedingcenter.org/.