1/16/2008 11:41:00 AM Pregnant moms airlifted overseas Hospital couldn’t cope with influx of premature babies. Moms had to make anxious dash to North America
Meredith Ebbin
A bumper crop of premature births resulted in two pregnant women having to be flown off-island to give birth because the hospital's Special Baby Unit was full.
One woman had to be air ambulanced to the U.S. while a second was whisked off to a hospital in Canada when it became evident her baby would be arriving weeks ahead of schedule, the Bermuda Sun has been told.
Both cases occurred in November, a hospital spokesman said yesterday, and are believed to have take place within days of each other. Mother and baby in both cases are doing well - the hospitals where they were flown were determined by their insurance company, which pays for the cost of air ambulance and overseas hospital stay.
The Bermuda Hospitals Board spokesman described the increase in the number of premature births as "unprecedented," and said the hospital has boosted staffing levels so that a maximum of 12 babies can now be cared for in the Special Baby Unit instead of the previous number of 10.
A nurse who wanted to remain anonymous confirmed there had been an "onslaught of premature babies" at KEMH late last year.
She explained that the decision to air ambulance a pregnant mother off-island to have a premature baby is determined by staffing levels. One nurse is assigned to each premature baby. If that can't be done, the mother has to be sent overseas for the baby's safety.
In response to questions from the Bermuda Sun, the BHB said in a release: "There was a sudden increase in the number of premature babies needing to be cared for on our Special Care Baby Unit in November of 2007. KEMH is able to care for up to 12 babies on this unit and it is extremely unusual to be filled to capacity.
"As the hospital was aware that the SCBU was reaching capacity, we worked with overseas hospitals in the U.S. and Canada to move two of our mothers and premature babies overseas.
Our priority is always to ensure that care is provided to those who need it and, with the assistance of our overseas partners, we ensured that mothers and babies received the care and attention required, during this unusually busy time.
"While it is extremely unusual for this number of premature births on-island, KEMH is prepared for unexpected peaks.
"By cross-training our nurses to specialise in SCBU, we are able to call on extra staff resources at times of peak demand in Bermuda, and through our relationships with hospitals abroad we made sure care was available to cope with the unprecedented peak in numbers experienced last November. Following this peak, we increased our capacity from 10 to 12 and we will continue to monitor the situation closely."
