FARGO, N.D. — Essentia Health debuts its new Mamava suites, and it’s the first healthcare system in North Dakota to have it. For breastfeeding moms, it can be stressful figuring out the next place to pump or nurse. “Moms go everywhere, they don’t just stay home because they’ve had kids,” Danielle Ritter, Director of National Accounts at Mamava, said. Oftentimes…
FARGO, N.D. — Martha Mink’s son JP weighed one pound and nine ounces when he was born in 2015. “He lived for only three days,” Mink said. But that wouldn’t be her only experience in the NICU. Her daughter JJ was born in July 2018 at only three pounds. It wasn’t until she got home from the hospital that she…
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…
FARGO, N.D.– It’s off to the races for babies in the area. Crawling to their parents is something they do every day, but this time there are prizes on the line. Chosen for their nicknames, these babies are competing to be the fastest crawler for the first ever Y94 Baby Crawl. “A lot of them put nicknames in there so one…
FARGO, N.D. — Most parents only have one child in Essentia’s NICU. But for the Vanbruggen’s, giving birth at only 33 weeks into the pregnancy meant putting triplets into intensive care. “They had to spend about a month in the NICU mainly just learning how to drink and how to keep themselves warm and kind of basic things that full–term…
FARGO, N.D. — A simulation training tool at Sanford Children’s Hospital is about as close as you can get to the real thing. The doll used is so realistic that it moves, breathes, and even cries. “It’s nice to see babies like this who do react. Sometimes I feel like we’re just getting told vitals and we’re making up the…
FARGO, N.D. — Several families are celebrating the start of a new life along with the new year. “I was in the middle of a contraction and heard someone say, ‘oh it’s 2019,’ so not what I expected for a celebration,” Brittany Nygaard, a new mom, said. That’s certainly not a typical way to ring in the new year. After being…
FARGO, N.D. — Several families got the ultimate Christmas present: babies born on Christmas day. Sanford says six babies had been born as of 2 p.m., with more mothers in labor in the afternoon. Nurses say that’s about average for a typical day. Families and nurses both say bringing new life into the world makes the holiday more joyous. “It’s hard…
FARGO, N.D. — Vicki Holtan, who’s been a NICU nurse for 40 years, got quite the surprise from her family and co-workers. “We said we’re going to a Redhawks game, we’re at the lake… We said we’re going to take a day away from the lake and go to a Redhawks game, which is probably a little suspicious but she went…
MOORHEAD, Minn. — The Star Legacy Foundation is raising awareness for pregnancy loss by hosting a 5K event and fundraiser. One participant in the event, Audra Mikesh, describes how she felt she found out her daughter was stillborn. “Blank. They told me and I didn’t know what to do. It was a very hard day for everybody,” she said. Her baby…
