January 26, 2013: What a day to start the Republic Day! While I thought I would write a piece on my blog later today. I was sleeping in my call room, when I got a call from the nurses that I am needed in the ER for a mother who had just arrived with a prolapsed cord. I rush to ER, to be told that the mother is on her way to L & D. I reroute myself to the L & D. Here is a G6P4 mother who has a visible prolapsed cord and is in  agony. Surprisingly , she had no prenatal care and tells that her EDC is March 13 (thus, approx 33 weeks) Now, do not ask me how she knows her EDC.!

She is taken to the OR and an emergent CS is performed. A much younger preemie (approx 31 weeks) is handed over to us. As if that alone is not sufficient, I am immediately told that another one is on the way! So, she has a twin pregnancy! With 2 preemies under one radiant warmer, both needing positive pressure ventilation, the reader may well know how my situation might be! With my hands full, I summon a  resident doctor to help us. We scramble for 2 sets now: 2 ambu bags, 2 intubations and so on. Luckily, the babies had decent spontaneous breathing and decided not to give us too difficult a time.

For next couple of hours, with adrenaline rush, we were able to stabilize the babies, start ventilators, give surfactant, and place umbilical lines.

As the saying goes, when it rains, it rains cats and dogs! Thus, we  had a stormy start to my Saturday morning, it being a Republic day!