TWINS, Kyle and Kyla, born to 31-year-old Ruth McCalmon, at the New Amsterdam Public Hospital (NAPH), were among 22 babies born on Christmas Day at public hospitals across the country.
The Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) saw the most babies born with a whopping 10 deliveries. As is customary, the Christmas Day babies and others in the maternity ward at the GPHC were treated to a visit from First Lady Arya Ali and given care packages.
The First Lady also sent a quantity of hampers and care packages to the West Demerara Regional Hospital in Region Three. On her official Facebook page, she shared how elated she was to be able to share Christmas with the mothers.
“This is what Christmas means for us – spending time with those we love and showing them in a tangible way how much they mean to us. As I looked on the little faces of those newborns, I felt a sense of gratitude, that even though it has been a challenging year for many of us, there are still moments like these where we can celebrate together,” she said.
At the GPHC, five boys and five girls were delivered, while three boys and two girls were delivered at the NAPH in Region Six. Two boys were born at the Skeldon Hospital, three girls and two boys at Suddie Hospital in Region Two, and one boy and one girl at the Linden Hospital Complex in Region Ten.
McCalmon delivered her babies at 07:26hrs and 07:27hrs, respectively. The timing of the birth did not come as a surprise to the Tucber Park resident since December 25 was her due date. She was beyond excited to share the joy of the season with the additions to her family.
McCalmon expressed gratitude to the staff at the maternity unit for their patience, kind words and professionalism during the entire birthing process.
Of the three other babies delivered at NAPH, 17-year-old first-time mother, Ashmetha Satrohan, of Number 19 Village, delivered a 2.68kg baby girl at 14:00 hrs.
A 3.18kg bouncing baby boy was born to 19-year-old Beyonce Sooklall, of Hopetown Village, West Coast Berbice, at 15:38hrs, while at 19:15hrs, a 3.76 kg bouncing baby boy was delivered by 19-year-old Ravina Hardat of Canefield Settlement, East Canje.
Over at the Skeldon Hospital in Region Six, 25-year-old Michelle Jaundoo, of Number 78 Village, was admitted at around 05:00hrs and delivered her second son about thirty minutes later. She named him Kemuel Zion Jaundoo.
One and a half hours later, 33-year-old Farzana Ali of Number 76 Housing Scheme Corriverton, already a mother of three girls, gave birth to her son at 07:00hrs.
Ali was expected to give birth on December 26, but went into labour just after midnight on Saturday. Her husband wasted no time in getting her to the hospital. She named her newborn, Alog Harryram.
Both mothers commended the staff for the good treatment and care they received at the health institution.
Meanwhile, doctor-in-charge of the Skeldon Hospital, Dr Ryan Campbell, was happy with the deliveries, noting that the hospital had been undergoing major infrastructure upgrades to improve its service delivery. Recently, the maternity unit was boosted with an ultrasound machine and a cardiotocograph (CTG) machine which is used to monitor pregnant mothers.
“I am happy that they were able to access the service here in their own community and I am happy we were able to provide quality service they would be appreciative of; they didn’t had to leave and their families they didn’t had to travel all the way to New Amsterdam. It shows the community has confidence in the hospital,” he said.
In Berbice, the Regional Health Services donated hampers containing essential supplies to each mother and newborn.
At the Suddie Hospital, doctors and nurses were kept busy throughout the day with the deliveries. The first one, a girl, came at 01:50hrs weighing 3.55kg. Her proud parents are Diana Lowtan and Ronald Bourne of Cotton Field.
At 07:00hrs, Tushana Springer, of Onderneeming, added a 3.9 kg baby boy. At 12:15hrs Rockel Benjamin, of Manawarin Pomeroon River, delivered another baby boy, while an hour later Kimberly Roland, of Buck Hall, delivered a girl.
Closing off the day’s deliveries was first-time mother, Teshanna Samaroo, who welcomed a baby girl weighing 3.25kg via a C- section delivery.
“We want to thank all the doctors and nurses especially Dr Dyal and Dr Alverez for performing my wife C-section. All praises to them for a safe delivery,” an overjoyed Martin Samaroo (Teshanna’ husband) commented.
At Linden, the hospital welcomed its first baby at 05:05hrs, when a 2.9kg baby girl was born to Tenesha Carter. Alison Forde then give birth to a 3.4kg baby boy at 12:05hrs.
