Eliana Menegbo came into this world with a strong will to survive and a mother who believed in her strength, which baby Eliana needed during the 116 days she spent in our Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) in the Rawlco Centre for Mother Baby Care, at Regina’s General Hospital.
Her mother, Korle Menegbo, visited the emergency room more than once for bleeding and pain during her pregnancy but she did not require treatment at the time. Then, Korle’s water broke in February 2024 when she was only 21 weeks pregnant and she was admitted to the Labour & Birth unit at the Regina General Hospital.
Her medical team was concerned she might develop an infection and monitored her carefully during her three-week stay. Korle, who could feel her baby moving, was grateful for the hourly checks and weekly ultrasounds to confirm the baby’s condition. Once the medical team was convinced the baby was stable, Korle was sent home on bed rest.
On March 28 while getting blood work done at the hospital, Korle felt unwell and experienced more bleeding. Later in the day, an ultrasound in the Labour & Birth unit, showed the baby was in distress and needed to be delivered, despite having 12 weeks to go before the Korle’s due date. Eliana was delivered by Caesarean section that night, at 28 weeks, and was immediately taken to our NICU for urgent care.
Korle held her breath when she went to the NICU to see her baby for the first time. Eliana was surrounded by doctors and nurses, inside an isolette with several medicine lines and an oxygen tube attached to her. The care she received from our specialized NICU medical team during her first 24 hours was critical to her surviving, and included draining fluid from her lungs and receiving oxygen, as she was too small to breath on her own.
“It was overwhelming, but it was also a blessing because I don’t know if she would have survived without the NICU,” says Korle, who was discharged three days later. She visited every day, sitting by Eliana’s isolette, singing to her daughter and praying while pumping milk for her feedings.
18 days after giving birth, an emotional Korle held her baby girl for the very first time. The length of time they were skin-to-skin got longer each day, as Eliana became better able to regulate her temperature and her oxygen saturation improved. Thanks to the care Eliana received in our NICU she was able to overcome issues with her lungs and a brain bleed, so that she could finally go home in late July 2024.
“I never once believed she would not be okay. She even got off the oxygen earlier than they expected. She is breastfeeding like a champ. Everything has fallen into place. I am so grateful to God and those who work in the NICU. The doctors and nurses were wonderful,” shares Korle, who has appointments with specialists who will monitor Eliana’s brain, lungs and eyes as she grows and develops.
“Our NICU team provided great care to Eliana so she can be home with her family. She is one of over 500 babies born in Regina each year whose families rely on our NICU to provide the best care possible, right here at home,” says Dino Sophocleous, president and CEO of Hospitals of Regina Foundation. “We support this exceptional team by investing in the technology and equipment they use in their efforts to give our children the best chance at going home and living better lives.”