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Shults Pediatrics to partner with nonprofit to provide donor milk for vulnerable babies

August 4, 2022

Shults Pediatrics has announced a formal partnership with Mothers’ Milk Bank of Tennessee (MMBTN) to become the nonprofit’s 13th Milk Drop Depot in the state.

The new location in Knoxville at Shults Pediatrics, which is part of Summit Medical Group, will provide a convenient place for pre-screened and approved milk donors to donate their frozen milk. Donations will be transported to the MMBTN facility in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, and will be available to babies in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) across the state.

“We cannot think of a better way to serve vulnerable babies in the community than by providing a safe and accessible option for mothers to donate their breastmilk,” Dr. Stephanie Shults said. “This is a community resource, and we want all mothers who wish to donate to know we are an approved depot site. The overarching goal is to facilitate more depots to open and help more NICU babies. The more donors, the more milk, and hopefully this can be rolled out for any baby in need.”

As the state’s only non-profit milk bank, Mothers’ Milk Bank of Tennessee filters, mixes, bottles, pasteurizes and cultures donated breast milk from approved donors before distributing the milk to NICUs in Tennessee. The organization also relies on support from the state to further its mission to serve all vulnerable babies in Tennessee who need donor milk and to support breastfeeding mothers.

“I applaud the physicians and leadership at Shults Pediatrics and Summit Medical Group for their strategic partnership with MMBTN,” said Dr. Susan Campbell, executive director of MMBTN and International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC). “Becoming a Milk Drop Depot is a great way to promote the benefits of breast milk while also providing a service to donor moms. Their support will allow us to reach more medically fragile babies across Tennessee.”

In addition to serving as a Milk Drop Depot site, Shults Pediatrics offers lactation consulting to new mothers whose children are patients at the practice. Both Dr. Shults and Rebekah Reid, RN, are an International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC).

For more information, visit shultspediatrics.com.

About Summit Medical Group
Summit Medical Group is East Tennessee’s largest primary care organization with more than 375 providers at more than 80 practice locations in 15 counties. Summit also consists of four diagnostic imaging centers, mobile diagnostic services, eight physical therapy centers, four express clinics, central laboratory and sleep services center. Summit provides healthcare services to more than 475,000 patients, averaging over 1 million encounters annually. For more information, visit summitmedical.com.

About Mother’s Milk Bank of Tennessee
Mothers’ Milk Bank of Tennessee (MMBTN) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit milk bank founded in 2014 by Susan Campbell, MD, IBCLC and Helen Scott, RN, IBCLC to provide pasteurized donor human milk (PDHM) to at-risk babies across Tennessee. Since its inception, MMBTN has created 13 Milk Drop Depot sites across Tennessee where mothers can drop off excess breast milk. In November 2021, the organization opened its pasteurization facility in Murfreesboro, Tennessee to serve the entire state. MMBTN is a Proud Member Milk Bank with the Human Milk Banking Association of North America (HMBANA) To learn more, visit milkbanktn.org.