Man Delivers Baby Son With Help From Google And YouTube

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Main Category: Nursing / Midwifery
Also Included In: Pediatrics / Children's Health;  Pregnancy / Obstetrics
Article Date: 04 May 2009 - 10:00 PDT

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Royal Navy technician Marc Stephens successfully delivered his wife of their fourth baby, a son, at home in Cornwall, UK, while waiting for the ambulance to arrive, after finding out how to do it with the help of Google and YouTube.

A spokesperson for the Royal Navy told thisiscornwall.co.uk that Marc's wife Jo went into labour more quickly than they were expecting.

Marc, who is a leading air engineering technician at Royal Naval Air Station Culdrose in Cornwall, one of Europe's largest helicopter bases, said he was getting nervous about the birth, which they had already decided to have at home, in Redruth.

So when his wife started feeling some discomfort, he thought he would read up about how to deliver babies just in case.

He went on Google and put in search words like "how to deliver a baby" and found some information on midwifery and some videos on YouTube, including one on how to deliver a baby in a car.

Then about four hours later, just after 2 am, Jo woke her husband and told him she was having contractions every five minutes. Marc rang the midwife who said they were very busy and there wasn't enough time for them to come round and they should call an ambulance straight away.

Marc found himself having to intervene before the ambulance arrived after he saw the baby's head coming out when his wife went on all fours. A few minutes later, and their baby son Gabriel, weighing 5lbs 5 ozs, was born into his arms at 2.32 am.

"The videos gave me peace of mind. I think I would have coped, but watching videos made things much easier," he told BBC News.

He said while he had spent most of the time at his wife's head when the other three children were born, this time he wasn't "afraid to go down to the business end".

Marc said he didn't panic at all, and that his Royal Navy training helped him stay calm.

Besides, he explained to the press, he wasn't alone: his youngest daughter, 2-year-old Jasmine, stood behind him and watched the whole thing.

After the birth, the Stephens went to Royal Cornwall Hospital at Treliske where Jo and Gabriel were given a "clean bill of health" said the BBC News report.

As well as Jasmine and Gabriel, the Stephens have two other children, both girls: six-year-old Zoe and five-year-old Sophie.

Main sources: BBC News, thisiscornwall.co.uk.

Written by: Catharine Paddock, PhD
Copyright: Medical News Today
Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

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