A specialist pod that mothers can use to breastfeed their babies has been installed at a Nottinghamshire hospital. King's Mill Hospital, in Sutton-in-Ashfield, became the first in the UK to provide the facility, which is situated inside the main entrance.
Installed in November, the 24/7 lockable MyPod can be used by visitors and staff to privately feed infants and express milk. Sherwood Forest Hospitals (SFH) put the pod in place after a member of staff, Victoria Cooke, complained of a lack of comfortable, private space.
The 32-year-old, from Chesterfield, said the space would help relieve anxieties about breastfeeding in public. “I’m so glad that a proactive change has been made to facilitate people in the future, on the back of my own personal experience," she said.
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"Having the MyPod available to both staff and visitors is going to be really helpful and will relieve any anxieties that they may have about feeding or expressing in public places." The room contains a comfortable chair with a footrest, a place to plug in a breast pump and charge a phone, dimmable lights, a bag storage area and baby changing facilities.
Infant feeding specialist midwife Natalie Boxall said: "Women and parents can feed their baby in public anywhere in the UK, including within SFH buildings when they are here to visit or work. However, the SFH pod is provided for anyone coming to King’s Mill Hospital who wants a quiet and private space to express their milk or breastfeed or chestfeed their child. The pod will be open access and is lockable from the inside.
"Also present at the launch were members of the trust’s Lime Green Infant Feeding Team, which provides postnatal feeding support in the community, midwives and healthcare support workers, and members of BABES breastfeeding peer support groups."
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