Delivering babies for generations – Hamilton Health Sciences

Four generations of the Allingham family born at West Lincoln Memorial Hospital. From left to right: Paul, Michael, baby Jaxson, Neil.

In March of 2024, West Niagara resident Neil Allingham was thrilled to become a great-grandpa. What also made it special was that his great-grandson Jaxson became the fourth generation of Allinghams to be born at West Lincoln Memorial Hospital (WLMH).

Allingham’s parents settled in Grimsby in the late 1940s and he was born at WLMH in 1953. He and his four siblings grew up in Grimsby and Allingham has stayed in the West Niagara area his whole life.

“I’m so proud to have four generations born at West Lincoln Memorial Hospital.”

“It has always been a tight-knit community, where everyone supports each other,” says Allingham. “My mom was even on the West Lincoln Memorial Auxiliary board and supported the hospital for many years.”

Allingham and his first wife had three kids, all of whom were born at WLMH. While not all of his kids have stayed in the area, his grandson Michael, also born at WLMH, has. Michael and his wife Casandra welcomed their first child, Jaxson, to the family in March 2024, making Allingham a first-time great-grandparent.

Catherine Duffin, director, community programs and site administration, WLMH

As a community-level hospital, it’s unique to have a specialty service like obstetrics. And over the years, the WLMH obstetrics and newborn services team has worked hard to provide a personalized, patient-focused approach to the care they provide. This has resulted in an excellent reputation across the region.

“At WLMH we have a strong sense of community, collaboration and commitment,” says Catherine Duffin, director of community programs and site administration at WLMH. “We pride ourselves on being an integral part of this community, and just like a small-town environment, we work together and deliver care as if patients and colleagues are our neighbours.”

What’s new

Obstetrics and newborn services in the new hospital, which will open on November 24, will have a new set up. At the current building, patients give birth in a birthing room, then transfer with the baby to a recovery room.

At the new WLMH building, there are six private birthing suites where the patient is admitted and remains for the full length of their stay. These rooms are larger, are fully equipped for labour and delivery and have all the amenities needed once the baby arrives. They also include a breastfeeding chair, pull out furniture for a family member to stay, and a private bathroom with a shower.

“We’re really looking forward to the new space,” says Stephanie Skeldon, clinical manager of obstetrics and newborn services at WLMH. “Having the patient stay in the same room will not only be easier on them, but it gives the new family their own space and privacy.”

Stephanie Skeldon, clinical manager, obstetrics and newborn services, WLMH

Skeldon says this new set-up will also allow the staff to provide a more team-based approach to care.

“We’ll no longer have to transition the patient from a labour and delivery nurse to a postpartum nurse,” she says. “There will still be the two nurses, each with their area of focus, but with the patient staying in the same space, it means the nurses can work together more seamlessly.”

Enhancing the level of care

The team also integrated the new Hospitalist Midwifery Program into their services earlier this year. This means that hospitalist midwives are part of the team and collaborate with nursing staff, manage patients and update the main health-care provider on the patient’s progress until they need to be at the hospital for the baby’s birth. When first launched in June, the hospitalist midwives started by working 12-hour shifts each day. They now have shifts that cover the full 24 hours, seven days a week, just like nursing staff. This will be maintained as the team moves to the new hospital.

Entrance to Obstetrics and Newborn Services in the new building, located on the second floor.

The hospitalist midwives also run a newborn assessment and postnatal clinic, which allows patients to go home earlier after the birth and return for checkups. The new hospital has a dedicated clinic room within obstetrics and newborn services that will be used for these clinic checkups.

With overwhelmingly positive feedback from patients since integrating the hospitalist midwifery program, the team is looking forward to enhancing the level of care even further with the new hospital building’s private birthing suites.

The anticipation

Skeldon is thrilled to have a facility that will finally match the level of care and dedication the team provides. “With the current facility being more than 70 years old, it hasn’t always given the best first impressions.”

The current hospital was built in 1949 and can no longer meet the demands of the growing West Niagara region. Prior to service closures during the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 800 babies were born at WLMH each year. With the addition of the hospitalist midwifery program and soon the new hospital building, which overall has an almost 80 per cent larger footprint, the obstetrics and newborn services team anticipates returning to their pre-pandemic birthing numbers in the near future.

Allingham says his family’s experiences in obstetrics and newborn services have been wonderful and he looks forward to the new hospital building.

“I’m so proud to have four generations born at West Lincoln Memorial Hospital and hope that with the new hospital, my family can continue to carry on this tradition,” he says.

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