Durban - Had it not been for the nurse who detected a clinical irregularity on a 29-week-old foetus that led to a lifesaving operation while still in the mother’s womb, who knows what the outcome would have been for baby Smangaliso.
But thanks to Sister Primrose Goge, 44, from Shakas-kraal Clinic, who credited her experience in primary health care and passion for antenatal science for the lifesaving discovery, the healthy baby was born this week.
Smangaliso underwent heart surgery while he was still in his mother’s womb.
Goge said that having worked in primary health care, including antenatal, for the past 20 years with just basic medical equipment, she had learned the tricks of not relying only on machines to provide the best care for her patients.
“When the mother came for an antenatal check-up, I could see that she wasn’t well. There were no test results to tell me what the problem was but I was immediately concerned about the wellbeing of the baby she was carrying,” she said.
Despite no obvious signs of ill health of the foetus, Goge said she had a nagging feeling that something was wrong.
“At week 29, the mother had already passed the routine ultrasound stage, but I asked her to go for an ultrasound anyway, because it was the only way we would know that the baby was healthy and there was nothing to worry about,” Goge explained.
Another good move Goge made was to instruct the mother to not wait for her next check-up date, but to immediately bring the results of the ultrasound to her.
“I couldn’t make her wait for her return date. I knew that should the ultrasound detect any abnormality, it could be too late to save the baby if she didn’t return immediately,” she said.
Upon examining the ultrasound, Goge concluded that there was an anomaly around the heart and lungs of the foetus, and referred the pregnant mother to Stanger hospital for further investigation.
“As someone who provides basic health care to pregnant women, I know that I am their first defence against any life threatening problems. That is why I take extra care and act fast and send them for scans, because there are two lives that have to be protected there. We can’t wait or take chances,” she explained.
She said she was happy that the baby had been born healthy and couldn’t wait to meet him. “I want this baby’s story to remind and encourage pregnant mothers about the importance of antenatal check-ups.”
Sunday Tribune