By Rodney Jackson
Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center Public Affairs
FORT HOOD, Texas – Routine emergency-response training and rapid coordination between Emergency Department and Labor and Delivery staff helped ensure the safe transfer and care of a mother and newborn after an unexpected delivery in the family car enroute to the Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center in the early morning of Oct. 7.
Hearing a cry of “Help! My wife is having a baby!” shocked Patrizia Brown into action just outside the CRDAMC parking garage around 7 a.m. Brown, a certified nursing assistant assigned to the Women’s Health Clinic, immediately rendered assistance to the distraught new father, directing him to the emergency room entrance.
Brown alerted emergency department staff where registered nurse Debra Woods activated the response team to assess the mother and baby. While alerting staff, the father, Spc. Matthew Perez, an automated logistics specialist, close behind Brown into the department said, “correction she had the baby”.
“Since he said she had already delivered, I put on gloves went to the car and assessed the baby and mom,” Woods said. “I made sure the baby had good coloring, was breathing, and that mom was okay and holding the baby securely.”
Woods instructed the mother to stimulate the newborn by stroking the baby’s back while additional emergency staff arrived. Recognizing the need to safely move both patients, Woods directed the team to bring a stretcher and warm blankets.
Doctors, nurses, medics and the emergency department charge nurse worked together to transfer the mother and newborn from the vehicle to a stretcher, protect them from the morning temperatures and begin immediate care.
Spc. Colin Evans, a combat medic, and Sgt. 1st Class Justin Harper, the emergency room noncommissioned officer in charge, assisted in meeting the immediate needs of the new family.
Both are parents and for Harper, it was particularly thrilling to be a part of the care team because it was his own daughter’s birthday that day.
“It was a super feeling,” said Evans. “I remember what it was like to have my kid, so being there to actually experience that and help somebody else was exciting.”
The mother and newborn were transported to labor and delivery, where the obstetric and pediatric teams completed the delivery process, stabilized the mother and continued newborn care.
Capt. Demetria Miller, an emergency room senior resident, said the real-life situation reinforced the value of medical readiness and team coordination.
“Our senior resident selects an education and training topic each day, and that morning we happened to choose infant resuscitation and childbirth,” Miller said. “When we heard the call for a delivery outside, the team immediately responded with the stretcher, blankets and necessary support.”
“That is exactly why we train,” Miller said. “We must be prepared for unexpected emergencies and ready to respond quickly. In this case, the teams worked together, and mother and baby received the care they needed.”
Emmanuel Diaz-Perez, an OB-GYN assigned to Labor and Delivery, said vehicle deliveries at the medical center are uncommon, making preparation and teamwork especially important.
“I’ve been here since 2017, and this is only the third time it’s happened,” Diaz-Perez said.
Both parents, Perez and mom, Jedhrynn Manalo were grateful for the fast actions of the staff.
Manalo said the delivery progressed rapidly during the family’s drive to the medical center. Initially she was concerned when she did not hear her daughter cry immediately after birth, but she said the responding staff quickly assessed the situation and reassured the family.
“The team did really good,” Manalo said. “They checked both of us, and everything was OK.”
Perez said his priority was getting his wife and daughter to medical care as quickly as possible. He credited the staff with providing attentive care while keeping him involved throughout the response.
“My whole thing was making sure my wife and baby were taken care of, and they were very attentive to that,” Perez said. “They worked around me so I could stay with them.”
Amina Lee, weighing 7 pounds and 14 inches long, will have an unusual birth story to share.
For CRDAMC staff, the response demonstrated how regular training, clear communication and coordinated emergency care support medical readiness and ensure the health of military families during unexpected events.
Amina Lee, weighing 7 pounds and 14 inches long, and parents, Jedhrynn Manalo and Spc. Matthew Perez, an automated logistical specialist, pose for a photo the day after baby Amina delivered in the car on the way to the hospital Oct. 7. (photo by Rodney Jackson Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center Public Affairs)
