A NEW mum has praised East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust for giving her the birth she dreamed of in a rare caesarean procedure.

Victoria Whitham opted for a ‘gentle C-section’, an operation that enabled her to witness her son, Wilbur, being born without the intrusion of a screen.

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During a general c-section a woman can’t usually see her stomach being cut open as well as the baby being delivered.

The process involves the baby being passed on to the woman’s birth partner without skin to skin contact.

First-time mum Victoria said: “I truly am ecstatic with the service I received, but initially I was so upset to find out that I couldn’t have a natural birth.

“So after doing my research I came across the gentle section that is most common in America.

“I worked with the team and told them what I wanted and they were absolutely fantastic.

“People keep asking me whether I felt queasy when looking down to see your stomach being sliced open, but I was rather calm.”

According to the 27-year-old, out of the five surgeons who were present as the procedure took place, only two of them had been involved in a ‘gentle c-section’ delivery before.

“Quite a few of the staff were telling me that it was the first time they had ever seen a woman have this delivery, said Victoria, who lives in Burnley.

“When Wilbur came out he was breech his little feet popped out first and it was such a surreal moment.

“The staff were absolutely amazing and I can’t thank them enough for giving me this amazing birth from start to finish.

“They were fantastic in giving me everything possible.”

Victoria also described it as ‘birth rather than surgery’ and opted to watch everything happen.

Louise Dunn, who runs East Lancashire Maternity Group, said that women in East Lancashire are receiving the best possible care from the Trust’s award-winning maternity service.

She said: “This goes to show that mums are relaxed and that’s just the best thing ever.

“Women are being clearly heard when it comes to what they want.”

Russ McLean, chair of East Lancs Patient Voices Group said: “I think in general what I am finding is the local clinicians are going out of their way all of the time for patients.

“It’s wonderful that patients are getting what they want because they are the driving force behind these positive outcomes.

“It’s great for the staff to hear that they are accommodating the patients in a positive way. Huge congratulations to everyone involved.”

Angela O’Toole, head of midwifery at East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, said: “In the right circumstances, we like to offer a gentle c-section to women who deliver their baby by caesarean.

“It’s an incredibly powerful experience for a new mum to be able to hold and comfort her baby right after birth and a gentle c-section allows the mother to view the baby’s birth and feel like she’s participating in the process.

“Research also shows that immediate skin-to-skin contact helps regulate the baby’s body temperature and heart rate and facilitates bonding and successful breastfeeding.

“From everyone at the Lancashire Women and Newborn Centre, we wish Victoria, Scott and their beautiful son Wilbur all the best for the future.”