Mum gives birth to healthy baby in car

We had hoped to reach the hospital in time but could not make it.”

Mother

sharjah — In a rare emergency birth case, a healthy baby was delivered in a vehicle in front of a hospital in Sharjah recently.

The baby, weighing 2.6kg, was then shifted for routine newborn checkups, said the hospital. However, it did not reveal the identities of the mother and child. A car horn was heard in front of the hospital’s emergency room in the early hours of the morning, according to a Press release.

“Nurses ran to the car to find a woman who had just delivered her baby in the back seat. Both were in a good condition and the baby was crying, on its mothers chest.”

Doctors arrived at the scene to cut the umbilical cord and transfer the baby to the maternity ward where routine checks were carried out. Both the mother and the baby were said to be happy and healthy. “We had hoped to reach the hospital in time but could not make it,” said the mother.

Emergency deliveries such as this are “very rare” in the UAE, and this was the first reported successful birth in a car for Medcare Hospital Sharjah.

Births that occur outside of the hospital setting or planned home births that are not attended by a healthcare professional are rare — but they do happen. These births are known as ‘born before arrival’ (BBA).

Doctors emphasise that the most important precaution is for pregnant women to be aware of the risk and be prepared for emergency situations to ensure the best outcome for their baby.

One study found that women who had a BBA birth were most likely to be having their second baby or expecting a girl.

These BBA births occur more commonly in preterm babies and those with lower birth weight. Low maternal socioeconomic status and the distance to the nearest hospital were noted as among the potential influencing factors.

Doctors typically recommend that women head to the hospital to deliver their babies when their water breaks or when contractions become regular, meaning four or five minutes apart for more than an hour. But sometimes, none of these signs of labour occurs. It is important to remain calm in these emergency situations, they said.

Dr Kishan Pakkal, COO of Medcare Hospital Sharjah, said: “We counsel expectant mothers to be aware of all possible scenarios and the ability to deal with any event before they reach the hospital.”