Fear Met with Faith:
Stanley’s NICU Journey.
By Shannon Cessna
Fear was met with faith when Hellen unexpectedly went into labor at 26 weeks and 5 days pregnant with her son. With pre-term delivery pending, the small, local hospital she had planned to deliver at sent her to a known referral center in Arusha with a large Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).
Hellen arrived at this hospital fearful of the unknown, anxious about how early her son would be born, and deeply desiring him to be well taken care of. In the hours before delivery, thoughts of her unborn baby being extremely preterm and needing care swirled, and the ICHA neonatal ICU at Arusha Lutheran Medical Centre (ALMC) came to her mind.
She told her husband that she had heard stories of very small babies being cared for at ALMC.
While she remained in the labor ward, Baba, Bibi, and Babu went off to ALMC to ask questions about having their baby be cared for there. They made the decision to take care at ICHA’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at ALMC, but Hellen’s delivery was imminent, and she gave birth to a baby boy named Stanley at the hospital she had been sent to originally. He was born at 27 weeks gestation, weighing just 1 kg (2.2 lbs.). Shortly after Stanley’s birth, arrangements were made for a transfer to ICHA’s NICU at ALMC.
ICHA staff in the NICU were notified of baby’s age, weight, and status and a team was put together to transport Hellen and Stanley to bring them to ALMC. He had lost weight since birth and was needing NICU care badly. Sister Agnes and Shannon gathered respiratory equipment, warm blankets, and other supplies to safely transport this now 800-gram (1.75 lbs.) baby on CPAP (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure), skin-to-skin with his mother.
Hellen was seated next to Stanley in the NICU when the team arrived. She was gentle, kind, and so nurturing, even as her tiny baby lay under phototherapy lights with tubes and wires filling the borders of the cot. Stanley was breathing very fast and had little energy to move his arms and legs. Sister Agnes gave Hellen assurance that the team was going to take very good care of her boy and settled him on Hellen’s chest. The team checked final vitals, secured bubble CPAP in Stanley’s nose, and mother and son were brought via ambulance to ALMC.
Once in the NICU at ALMC, the team stabilized him, started on medications and kept him warm. He stayed in the NICU for 32 days, growing, maturing, and doing Kangaroo Care with Hellen. Once his weight was above 1000 grams (2.2 lbs.), he and Hellen were transferred to the Kangaroo Mother Care Unit to work on feeding skills and weight gain.
Finally, after about two months, mama and baby were discharged from the hospital together.
About Shannon Cessna
Shannon is a registered nurse from Southern California specializing in neonatal intensive care. Her global health journey began with Tiny Feet Big Steps (TFBS) in 2022. She has worked across East Africa, serving in Tanzania and southern Ethiopia, where she focuses on clinical care and nurse education, particularly in the care of premature, sick, and low-birth-weight newborns.
Shannon is currently in the United States fundraising to support her return to Tanzania and continue her work with ICHA and its partners to strengthen neonatal care and nurse education in East Africa.
