‘I was not prepared for premature birth’
WHEN pregnancy symptoms started to manifest, Cape Town neurologist Dr Alison Richardson did not pay attention and dismissed it as exhaustion and pains for working too hard.
Richardson, who opened a new practice at Netcare Chris Barnard Memorial Hospital, after a move from Gauteng, said she had been attending too much to her patients instead of herself.
“I guess it is a nature of us as doctors to put other people first. We tend to run up and down paying too much attention to others and their health rather than our own. Even when I felt extreme exhaustion and sometimes pains in the tummy I just ignored them… thinking that it’s all work-related,” she said.
Having discovered her pregnancy only at 29 weeks – after she felt the first kicks of her daughter, Kayleigh Jean, now 3 weeks – she said that she did not prepare herself for what was to come – a premature birth.
“I was still getting used to the idea that I’m pregnant when I was told by my gynaecologist that I had to rush to theatre for an emergency C-section. The gynae had picked up that the baby was not growing well as she was not getting enough nutrition from the placenta. So she was better off outside than in the womb,” she said.
Yesterday, Richardson joined millions of parents and medics around the world who celebrated World Prematurity Day. It aims to create awareness about prematurity, its causes, and the ways to avoid preterm birth.
As preterm infants represent the largest child patient group, the concerns of preterm babies and their families worldwide are placed in focus on this day.
According to the World Health Organisation, about 15 million babies are born prematurely each year, making a substantial contribution to neonatal mortality rates.
Richardson, who gave birth to Kayleigh Jean five weeks early, on October 28, admits that being a doctor did not prepare her.
“I think as a doctor you worry more… you always think of the worst case scenario. I was very scared of bringing someone so small into the world. I knew the risks involved very well… the lungs that are underdeveloped and other health complications that are associated with premature birth. Because I knew more I guess I worried more… being a doctor didn’t make me any stronger.”
After Kayleigh Jean spent three weeks in an intensive care unit with drips, feeding tubes and a breathing mask following breathing and developmental problems, Richardson said she has learnt to appreciate every minute with her bundle of joy, and has experienced what it is like to be in a patient’s shoes.
“As doctors we always give patients instructions on how to care for their health or take care of their sickly babies, but this experience has taught me firsthand what these patients often go through.
“I now know what it is like to give birth to a baby and not be able to spend the first crucial hours with your baby or take her home with you. But the experience also taught me that even premature babies are stronger than we think… they can achieve anything that full-term babies can achieve,” she said.
I WAS STILL GETTING USED TO THE IDEA THAT I’M PREGNANT WHEN I WAS TOLD BY MY GYNAECOLOGIST I HAD TO RUSH TO THEATRE FOR AN EMERGENCY C-SECTION