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This mom sings hospital's praises

Spotsylvania County mother wants to share the good news story of her 'miracle' baby

Date published: 3/30/2009

By CATHY DYSON

When Frances Croasdale-Simmons hears people complain about their hospital experiences--and as a hair stylist, she says that's the gripe she hears most often--she tells them about her little Gavin.

He was born 3 months early and weighed a pound and a half. His veins were as thin as strands of hair--his parents could see them through his translucent skin--and his tiny hands were the size of nickels.

At first, Croasdale-Simmons and her husband, Kris, who live in Lee's Hill, wondered how their baby could survive.

He had been in the womb only 24 weeks, compared to the normal gestation period of 40 weeks.

As premature babies go, he was among the smallest of the small and in the category with the biggest risks, according to the March of Dimes.

Three of 10 babies born at his gestational age don't make it. Of those who do, half are disabled. Half of the disabilities are severe problems such as cerebral palsy, blindness or deafness.

Gavin's parents, who should have been celebrating their baby's birth, didn't know if their son would make it through the night, much less what his future might hold.

But then--and this is the part of the story Croasdale-Simmons likes to tell her customers--she says a miracle happened.

Workers in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Mary Washington Hospital took over Gavin's care, as they did for the 404 premature babies brought to them in 2008. They told the couple the odds their son faced, but also urged them to hang on to hope.

They hooked up machines to help Gavin eat and breathe and gave him treatments to develop his lungs. They kept his doll-size body warm, monitored his underdeveloped systems and staved off deadly infections.

"If it wasn't for them, he wouldn't be here right now," his mother said. "They went above and beyond the call of duty, I'm here to tell you."

And she does tell her story, often. She's been a stylist at the Downtown Salon in Fredericksburg since 1998 and graduated from Chancellor High School the next year.

Customers know her by her middle name of Daniela, because that's what her parents call her and that's how she was introduced to the salon owner.

Some Good News is an occasional series that celebrates cheerful or inspiring news. See more at fredericksburg.com. Frances Croasdale-Simmons' premature labor was caused by chorioamnionitis, an inflammation of the fetal membranes. According to the March of Dimes, the cause of 40 percent of premature births is unknown. The four main causes of early labor are: Infection or inflammation Maternal or fetal stress Bleeding Stretching of the uterus, usually caused when there are two or more babies One of every eight babies born in the United States is a premature birth, according to the March of Dimes. The rate of premature births has risen 36 percent since the early 1980s. "Preterm birth is a serious health problem that costs the nation more than $26 billion annually," according to the Institute of Medicine.

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Date published: 3/30/2009

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