A baby boy born at just 24 weeks gestation has gone home with his parents after spending 127 days receiving specialist care in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).
Baby Draven Rockwell was given a celebratory send-off by medical staff, who lined the hospital corridors and cheered as he left the unit for the final time.
He was dressed in a miniature cap and gown and presented with a “NICU Grad” certificate created by a nurse who had grown close to his family.
Draven weighed only 1 lb 13 oz when he was born at 24 weeks and two days gestation, approximately four months before his due date.
His mother, Samantha Rockwell, began experiencing stomach pains shortly after completing a 15-hour shift at work. Draven was born within two hours of her arriving at hospital.
Because he was so premature, he immediately required support with his breathing and nutrition, as well as umbilical lines through which he could receive treatment.
Nurses described him as “extremely premature”, but said that he made steady progress with his breathing, feeding and weight gain during the following four months.
By the week of his discharge, baby Draven weighed more than 9lb.
His parents faced a difficult journey while he remained in hospital. Dad Charles Rockwell repeatedly travelled the nearly four-hour journey between their home and the neonatal unit, while also returning to work. Mum Samantha spent much of baby Draven’s final month in the hospital, staying alone near him.
Draven will continue to receive follow-up care at clinics closer to his family’s home. His medical team believes that he is now ready to continue growing and thriving with his parents.
Spokesperson for Right To Life UK, Catherine Robinson, said “Baby Draven’s graduation from neonatal intensive care is a wonderful celebration of just how far he has come since he was born weighing only 1 lb 13 oz”.
“His remarkable progress is a tribute both to his own resilience and to the dedication of the medical professionals who cared for him throughout those 127 days. We wish Draven and his family every happiness as he continues to grow and thrive at home”.
