Oct 20, 2008 12:06 pm US/Eastern
Dr. Mallika's Files: Case Of The Quick Delivery
Each week Dr. Mallika Marshall shares cases based on true stories from a local urgent care clinic, exclusively on wbztv.com. Names and identifiable characteristics of patients have been omitted or changed to protect patient privacy.
This Week's Case: A 32-year old pregnant woman comes to clinic with her husband and an overnight bag saying that she is in labor. Her due date was yesterday. She began having contractions an hour ago but doesn't think her water broke. As the registrar is signing her in, explaining that she should be at the hospital and not in an urgent care clinic, she has three back-to-back contractions. She is immediately taken back to an examining room. While the nurses are trying to obtain intravenous access and assess whether there have been any problems with her pregnancy, her water breaks. Within 2-3 minutes, she delivers a baby girl.
If you are pregnant, it is important to get good prenatal care, sometimes even before you conceive. Your doctor or midwife will explain to you, long before your due date, specifically what you should do if you go into labor. In most cases, you should call the prenatal clinic to let them know what symptoms you're having. They will then tell you how to proceed…either to continue to labor at home until your contractions are closer together or to proceed to the designated hospital where you had planned to deliver. Whether you plan to have your baby at home or in a hospital, it is important to have a trained professional by your side to ensure a safe delivery. You are, otherwise, putting yourself and your baby at risk.
Follow-up
The baby girl is vigorous and cries right away. The cord is clamped and the baby is placed on the mother's chest where she is wrapped in warm towels and blankets. She is then taken to another room for further examination and care. An ambulance is called to take both mother and child to the labor and delivery floor of a nearby hospital. Both are reported to be doing very well.
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