By Jerry Chatelain
FDNY EMT
When we first got the call, it came in as an unknown. When this happens, you never really know what to expect.
When we got to the subway train station, the MTA employee opened up the gate and rushed us through. When we got downstairs, there was a group of people yelling to hurry up. When I got there, there was a lady on the floor with her legs open, and a head protruding out.
Though I had never delivered a baby on the job, I did have experience with child birth before: I made the mistake of telling the doctor delivering my baby that I was training to become an EMT so he made me pull up a seat and watch everything. He showed me how to go in there and grab the baby’s head — everything.
That was years before this call. Back in the train station, I told the woman to push. My partner, Tom Loggin, caught up to me and took over when I got into my tech bag and started getting the OB bag out. The baby came out very quickly, and it was quiet for a few seconds until the baby started crying. There were about 100 people in the subway station, just watching. When the baby began to cry a big cheer began. It felt like we brought the super bowl trophy to New York.
I had no clamps so I had to use a roll of gauze to stop the umbilical chord from pulsing. I must have the only OB kit in the world that didn’t have any clamps for the cord, but the FDNY trained us to think on our feet.
After the bleeding stopped, we packed the baby up and put baby and mom in the ambulance.
The whole call took about 45 minutes. My Lieutenant came and said ‘Congrats, this is your first baby.’ Apparently he delivered more than 70 babies at his job.
One of the reasons why I joined EMS is because I’ve seen a lot of things happen as I grow up and one of the worst feelings to have is the feeling of not knowing what to do and being unable to help. By being an EMT I feel so much more prepared for anything. And it’s a great skill to have specially since I have a daughter.
So with only two months on the street, I helped bring a life into this world. It is definitely one of my most memorable moments.