‘MIRACLE BABY’ REUNITES WITH FINLEY CAREGIVERS

Eighteen minutes.

That’s how long newborn baby Gwendolyn Yeo went without a heartbeat when she was delivered by emergency C-section at Finley Hospital’s Family Birthing Suites on January 12. But thanks to the efforts of her caregivers at Finley Hospital, she was stabilized and is not expected to experience any long-term effects.

That’s why Gwendolyn’s parents, William and Traci, wanted to return to the Family Birthing Suites in early February to show Gwendolyn’s progress and thank the caregivers who saved her life.

“We just really wanted to say ‘Thank you,’” Traci remarked. “Because without Finley…without the nurses and the doctors and everyone who was in that room, I don’t think she’d be here today.”

Traci began experiencing abdominal pain one day during the late stages of her pregnancy. Despite initially wanting to ignore it, she came to Finley to get checked out. It was determined that she had suffered a placental abruption and Gwendolyn was not receiving oxygen and other vital nutrients. Making matters worse, the baby’s heart rate was falling.

“Baby’s heart rate did not look reassuring to us to the point that we couldn’t wait on it,” recalls Family Birthing Suites Manager Jenni Scott. “It was to the point that we needed to get the baby out.”

The number of doctors and nurses rushing to the delivery room was a sign to Traci that something was seriously wrong.

“She wasn’t breathing, because I was waiting to hear her cry. Then people started coming in the room and they called ‘Code Pink’ and then there was just a nonstop swarm of doctors and nurses. That’s when I knew it was bad.”

Gwendolyn received chest compressions for eighteen minutes until she was stable enough to be transferred to another facility, where she spent several days in the newborn intensive care unit. Meanwhile, Traci remained at Finley and had to lean on personnel here for information and support.

“It was torture,” she says. “My husband was trying to explain what was happening, but I didn’t really understand and it’s different when you’re hearing it second hand. Thank God for the nurses, because I don’t think I would have gotten through myself. Every time I needed anything, they were right on it.”

Following her release from intensive care, Gwendolyn’s brain scans showed no indications that she will experience any lasting effects of her treacherous birth. That’s when the Yeos decided to make a return visit to Finley to provide an update on Gwendolyn’s progress.

Their reunion saw more than a dozen team members take a moment from their day to check in on little Gwendolyn. Scott says it was important for those caregivers to see the impacts of their efforts.

“They absolutely needed this,” Scott said. “We don’t forget about our patients. I’m sure that every single one of these nurses has been thinking about this family since the day it happened. They’ll never forget this. It will stick in their minds forever.”

To learn more about Finley Hospital’s Family Birthing Suites, visit unitypoint.org/dbqbaby.