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The labor and delivery unit at an Ohio hospital is about to see a lot of call outs.
Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton, Ohio has just set a new record as 17 nurses — in the labor and delivery unit nonetheless — are expecting. The nurses made headlines as their unit’s previous pregnancy record was 11 at one time back in 2019.
“I kept finding out more and more and more were pregnant with me,” said Rileigh Batten, one of the lucky pregnant nurses to Fox 8.
“I’ve never seen this many together at one time,” said Amberly Saner, the nurse manager.
Each of the ladies are expecting between June and December. For a few, it’s their first bundle of joy while others it will be a nice addition.
“The first trimester was really hard, especially just with morning sickness that lasts all day and stuff like that,” says Kelby Strapp Meese, another expectant nurse. “But I think now that I’m in my second trimester, things are a lot better. It’s definitely still exhausting.”
Maddie, another nurse who is pregnant, told ABC News that she is 26 weeks and expecting her second child. Meanwhile, Rileigh, who is also expecting her second child, is about 31 weeks along.
Both have also both been working at Miami Valley for five years together.
“Maddie and I are actually best friends. So I’m planning on having Maddie deliver my baby,” Rileigh told ABC.
While the number of nurses set to go on maternity leave seems high, the nurse manager Saner said the impact won’t be too difficult to manage. The hospital has nearly 200 nurses and support nurses.
“We have a lot of support nurses that can pick up [shifts]. We also have a lot of part-time staff that can pick up an extra day and so, we’re not too worried about the coverage,” Saner said.
The nurses are able to share in the stress and support as first-time mothers have questions and concerns.
“Especially when I’m nervous about something or have questions, I have so many people who I can ask,” Meese told the Daily News. “The nurses we work with are just so supportive.”
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