Medela Americas Symposium 2025 Empowering Perinatal Team Session 2

Optimizing outcomes for preterm and vulnerable infants requires more than access to human milk, it demands a clear understanding of its biological value, effective clinical support, and systems that enable equitable delivery. This session explores the critical differences between mother’s own milk and donor human milk, the importance of early and structured lactation support, and the need to address practical and socioeconomic barriers that impact milk provision in the NICU. Together, these insights highlight how healthcare professionals can strengthen both clinical practice and system-level approaches to ensure more infants benefit from the full protective potential of human milk.

In this session, leading experts share complementary perspectives on advancing neonatal care through the optimal use of human milk.

• Dr. Paula Meier explains why mother’s own milk remains the gold standard, highlighting key biological and clinical differences compared with donor human milk and the importance of prioritising maternal milk in NICU care.
• Dr. Leslie Parker focuses on translating evidence into practice, presenting structured, evidence-based strategies to enhance lactation support and improve milk production in the critical early days after preterm birth.
• Dr. Aloka Patel and Dr. Tricia Johnson introduce the innovative ReDiMOM study, demonstrating how addressing socioeconomic and structural barriers can improve equitable access to mother’s own milk for NICU families.