A baby girl from Newport has celebrated her first birthday after being born weighing just 328 grams.
Baby Robyn was born at just 23 weeks and two days, when she was small enough to fit in the palm of a hand. She was initially placed in a sandwich bag to keep her vital organs warm, and required a ventilator to breathe. After developing sepsis, she required 16 blood transfusions.
Now after over a year of care across two hospitals, she is now a far healthier weight of 7kg.
“We are so proud of her”
For Robyn’s first birthday, the staff at Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospital in Cardiff made an effort to make the day special.
“Celebrating Robyn’s first birthday was a milestone at times we thought we would never reach”, her mother Chantelle said.
“We were able to spend the day in a separate cubicle and enjoy some privacy while family and friends visited”, she went on. “The cubicle was decorated with banners and balloons, it looked amazing”.
Her father Daniel added “Robyn was really spoiled with lots of lovely gifts and messages. We are so proud of her and what she’s overcome this year is truly amazing”.
In spite of seemingly insurmountable odds, Robyn’s parents say that she is “heading in the right direction” to being allowed to return home.
Chantelle said, “Spending a whole year in hospital has been challenging for us as parents. The last year has had many ups and downs but Robyn has made lots of progress”.
Premature babies are increasingly surviving with improved medical intervention.
At just over 23 weeks, baby Robyn was born before the current legal abortion limit of 24 weeks. Babies like Robyn highlight the clear contradiction at the heart of British abortion law and current medical practice.
On the one hand, the law permits ending the lives of babies at 22 and 23 weeks, and, on the other hand, current medical practice strives to save the lives of many babies born prematurely at 22 or 23 weeks gestation.
Spokesperson for Right To Life UK, Catherine Robinson, said “Congratulations to baby Robyn on reaching her first birthday after such a challenging year of medical treatment! We hope that she continues to improve and is able to return home soon”.
“Babies like Robyn demonstrate the strength and resilience of human life, and point to the humanity of unborn and preborn children before the abortion limit of 24 weeks. Hopefully stories like Robyn’s will help to change the minds of legislators considering a reduction in the abortion limit”.
