In an effort to support mothers visiting the hospital, MemorialCare Miller Children’s & Women’s Hospital Long Beach has officially opened its Mamava® lactation privacy pod – the first hospital in Southern California to do so. The use of the pod is available to those who are visiting a patient, have an appointment for themselves at Long Beach Medical Center, or for a child’s appointment at Miller Children’s & Women’s.
The Mamava suite is a self-contained, mobile pod with comfortable benches, a fold-down table, an electrical outlet for plugging in a breast pump and a door that can be locked for privacy. The 4-foot by 8-foot pod is meant for individual use, but can fit more than one person, such as mothers with babies and other children in tow.
“It is our goal to support all breastfeeding mothers,” says Shari Kelly, executive director, Cherese Mari Laulhere BirthCare Center, Miller Children’s & Women’s. “We agree with Mamava’s belief that all moms deserve a clean, comfortable and dignified place to use a breast pump or breastfeed distraction-free. Mamava pods provide flexibility for facilities and easy access for moms.”
Miller Children’s & Women’s is the only regional hospital that delivers comprehensive maternity and pediatric care under one roof. In 2018, Miller Children’s & Women’s became designated as a Baby-Friendly birth facility by Baby-Friendly USA. The Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative encourages and recognizes hospitals and birthing centers that offer an optimal level of care for breastfeeding mothers and their babies.The BirthCare Center is equipped to handle routine to high-risk pregnancies, so if a delivery isn’t routine, the baby is moved just down the hall to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) to receive specialized care.