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Twins born prematurely visit YRMC, reunite with nurse after 9 years

Sun - 7/22/2017

Nine years ago twin brothers were born prematurely on separate dates at Yuma Regional Medical Center. On Friday they returned to see the place of their birth as well as reunite with the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) nurse who took care of them for nine weeks.

It was late on Halloween night almost a decade ago that Xavier Navarro was born - at 11:59 to be specific - and one minute later on Nov. 1 his brother, Alexander, was welcomed to the world.

"I got pregnant in 2008," said the twins' mother, Veronica Navarro, at Friday's reunion. "They were supposed to be born January 3rd of 2009. Obviously that didn't happen and they came at 31 weeks. Up until then my pregnancy was completely normal. Everything was going fine, I had no problems, no gestational diabetes, no preeclampsia, nothing - they just wanted to come."

According to the Centers for Disease Control, a preterm birth is when a baby is born before 37 weeks have been completed. In 2015, preterm birth affected about one of every 10 infants born in the United States. The CDC webpage on preterm birth also shows that many times what causes a woman to deliver early is unknown and that back in 2013, 36 percent of infant deaths were due to preterm-related causes.

"They came no matter what the doctors did, no matter how hard they tried to stop it or keep me from dilating, they came and they were coming fast," Veronica recalled when speaking of her sons' birth. "I was rushed to the OR (operating room), and I was originally just going to have a C-section (caesarean section). That didn't happen. One of the doctors said, 'No, they are coming fast. She needs to be put under.' The last thing I remember was fighting with him and saying, 'No you are not taking my babies now. You can't. They are too little! And then I woke up in recovery without seeing my babies."

The mother of the twins noted she felt distressed at the twins' early birth.

"At that time I was groggy," she said. "I was not OK with anything and they wheeled me in to see Xavier because they were still working on Alexander. Xavier was born first and he weighed 3 pounds and 12 ounces (and) was about 17 and a half inches long. Alexander was 3 pounds, 7 ounces and he was about 16 inches long, if I remember correctly.

"I didn't get to see Alexander until the next day," she added. "I saw Xavier immediately. One of the nurses wheeled me in through the NICU."

Both twins spent a total of nine weeks receiving care in the NICU before they went home with their parents.

"Nine weeks is a really long time," said YRMC NICU director Tarisai Zivira. "It varies depending on the gestation (the process of carrying or being carried in the womb from conception until birth) or how early the babies are born. Nowadays it's a little bit different. Babies are sometimes going home early at 36 weeks, as long as the baby is gaining weight and eating well."

Zivira explained that the twins' doctor at the time wanted to make sure that the babies gained weight for three or four consecutive days before being sent home. Additionally, the doctor wanted to ensure that the twins went home together instead of separately so that the parents would not be torn between home and the hospital during a stressful time.

"Xavier was not gaining weight," Veronica said. "They both were also very sleepy so they did not have enough energy to eat. After they received a blood transfusion because their hemoglobin levels were low, they became more active and started eating."

Sandra Key, who was a NICU nurse and cared for the twins at the time, said the first goal when a baby enters the unit, however, is to stabilize the babies.

While caring for an infant, nurses are tasked with making sure the baby receives proper nutrition.

"They were so small that they couldn't eat by mouth, so that meant that they had to have a tube put down either their nose or their mouth," Key said. "The tubes initially were put down their mouth because they were on oxygen. It's also a matter of making sure babies stay warm and that they are not cold, especially when they are first born because if a baby gets cold, then they can go into some very severe health problems."

Nurses also must ensure the parents are able to see their babies and bond with them.

"You are not just taking care of the baby, you are basically taking care of the whole family," Key noted. "You get to know the whole family, and for the amount of time this family was there I was really able to develop a bond with them."

Key said she has kept in touch with the family since the twins were born. Currently, the Navarro family lives in Wisconsin.

As a military family, Veronica said they travel frequently and are currently on vacation. Since they were headed to California, they made the decision to show the twins the place of their birth and have a reunion with the nurse who cared for them.

The father, Victor Navarro, is presently in the Marine Corps and is reaching his 18th year in the military.

"It's great coming back here," Victor said. "When the twins were born I came to the hospital every day for nine weeks, so of course we bonded with certain people."

Key added that creating a bond and creating trust with the parents is vital in the NICU unit. She recalls that although she tried to assure Veronica that she was not at fault for the premature birth, many mothers who deliver early feel a sense of responsibility.

"I remember her saying, 'They shouldn't be here yet,' and not ever wanting to leave at night," Key said. "You have to give a mother that confidence that we will take care of the baby. No matter what happens, you can be assured that we will take care of your baby when you walk out that door. We are going to love that baby and we are going to hold them and treat them as our own so that parents can feel comfortable in going home and going to sleep at night, otherwise they don't rest."

Ultimately, it was Key's passion that led Veronica and Victor to trust the nurse with their sons.

"I always looked for Sandra because there was something about her," Veronica said. "I saw a of lot of compassion for the babies and a lot of passion for her job. I would see her deal with Alexander and Xavier and right away move on to the next baby and care (for them) exactly the same way that she would care for those two or any other child."

Key's patience in answering the questions of a concerned mother also played a factor in that trust, she noted.

"To me that's just humanity," Veronica said. "That is just love and shows you love your job and you love those babies."

After the first 24 hours, often referred by NICU nurses as the "honeymoon stage" the babies' personalities begin to emerge, Key said. Xavier always tried to kick his tubes out, she recollected, and Alexander would sleep soundly in the "nest" or blanket wrap to keep him contained.

"Xavier still kicks off his covers," Veronica chuckled.

Now, the twins make up an energetic pair who laughed frequently and smiled throughout the reunion.

"I am just really happy to be here and to come back to see my nurse who took care of me," Alexander said. "It's just good to be back here where I used to live and it's good be on vacation with my family."

Both twins were very inquisitive during the reunion, and asked Key questions about their time of birth.

"They have come a long way," Veronica said. "You would have never guessed that they were '31-weekers.' They do everything. Nothing stops them and nothing scares them. They are brave, they challenge me, and they teach me and they push me to be a better mom every day and a better human being."

For Key, who worked the night shift when the twins were born, the meeting was bittersweet since she says she will miss them, but at the same time she says she is happy to see them grow and thrive, like other babies she cared for at the NICU.

"Especially for the night shift, it's hard because we don't always get to see them leave," Key said. "They were with me for nine weeks, and when I came back to work that (one) night they were gone. It's like a piece of your heart goes with them."