Homewood gets three new lactation rooms

Three new lactation rooms were officially opened on the Homewood campus with a ribbon-cutting held Feb. 23. The spaces are located in Gilman Hall (Room 037), Hackerman Hall (103), and Hodson Hall (105B). Each is a single-user space with a Medela Symphony hospital-grade pump, a sink, a refrigerator for milk storage, and cabinets in which room users can keep their accessory kits and supplies.

Those involved in the project, which began in April 2019, were Johns Hopkins Facilities & Real Estate, the Krieger and Whiting schools, the university's Office of Benefits & Worklife, SM&P Architects, and Villatoro Construction.

The rooms represent the first of a series of new spaces that will continue to be developed on the university's campuses.

"Johns Hopkins has committed to including a lactation space in all new construction and renovation projects," says Beth Thierer, assistant director of Worklife programs. "This commitment makes the transition back to work a little bit easier for working parents without fear of a diminished supply [of milk] or concerns about milk storage or privacy.

"I have personally witnessed [non-Hopkins] work environments where a parent has had to pump in a file closet, an office that did not lock, and even a restroom," she says. "The dedication of Johns Hopkins to create clean, private spaces for their employees is remarkable and demonstrates a culture of worklife integration."

The addition of the three rooms brings the total number of registered lactation rooms to nine at Homewood and 45 throughout the university and health system, with other spaces available by request.

Those needing access should register for the Johns Hopkins Lactation Support Program; a confirmation email will be sent with room access and amenity information. To use the hospital-grade pumps in the rooms, employees must supply their own accessory kits.

Reach out to worklife@jhu.edu or 410-516-2000 with any questions.