Sanford Medical Center is Delivering More Babies Than Ever

The hospital delivered a total of nearly 800 babies over the past three months

FARGO, N.D. — Emmie Lee and Elle came into the world just a week ago.

“It hasn’t sunk in yet. Even from the day I found out that we’re having twins, it was a complete shock,” said their mother, Amanda Garcia.

The news of identical twins may have surprised Amanda, but it wasn’t a shocker to the Sanford Medical Center staff.

During the month of July alone, 12 sets of twins were born in the hospital’s Family Birth Center.

In fact, over the past three months, the center delivered a total of nearly 800 babies; the highest number they’ve ever seen.

“In the past we’ve averaged 230, 240, maybe, deliveries a month. And then the last three months, we’ve seen records in all three months, in May, June, and July,” said Family Birth Center Director Karey Stirling.

The hospital says these record–breaking numbers may not just be a coincidence.

They’re implementing more options for expecting mothers to have an “at–home birthing experience” in a medical setting.

“We’re offering birth designers, midwives, doulas, as many options for their experience as they might choose to have,” said Stirling.

But Sanford isn’t the only one expanding.

Officials say the city’s it’s in could be playing a part.

“I mean, you look around and you see the building that’s going on and the opportunity here, so, I think overall Fargo is really growing. And it doesn’t hurt that our fertility center is doing very well and having really high success rates,” said Stirling.

The next few months are projected to continue on the same track, with more babies being delivered than ever before.

But even with the growing number of deliveries, one nurse says each baby is unique.

“Everyone that comes to have their baby here has their own personal story and it’s always fun to get to know the families, even though we see them for such a short period of time,” said R.N. Alicia Howes.

And even though little Emmie Lee and Elle haven’t gotten to go home yet, at least they have plenty of company.

The hospital is also implementing low–intervention options for mothers in labor, including lower doses of medication and less monitoring for those who want it.