One Born Every Minute

In this episode an Amber Alert is declared at the Princess Anne Maternity Hospital. They are inundated with mothers in labour and are running out of beds. Three women with complications add to the drama. Head of Midwifery, Maria Dore, speculates that the harsh winter, with lots of snow, has led to an extremely busy September, nine months later. When Hayley (26) met Godfrey (35) she says she knew he was the one for her. He’s boisterous but good-natured, and enjoys playing computer games and eating fish and chips during his wife’s painful labour. Despite his jokes, Godfrey is missing his father, who died recently, and with the impending birth of his own child, the death of his dad is hitting home. Hayley has polycystic ovary syndrome so she knew the chances of conceiving were reduced. Now she’s happy to be in the final stages of pregnancy. But the staff are closely monitoring her high blood pressure. She says she’s no good with pain and that she cries when she has her legs waxed. “You’ll be wailing like a banshee my love,” chuckles Godfrey. Hayley wants an epidural, but on a frantically busy night at the Princess Anne she has no choice but to wait her turn for pain relief, and Godfrey’s at a loss as to what he should do. Amy (27) is outwardly cheerful but her previous four conceptions all resulted in miscarriages. Her partner Jordan (29) explains that this is the furthest along for a pregnancy Hayley’s been, and they are constantly worried something might go wrong. “It’s been tough” he adds. When Amy’s labour starts with some bleeding she’s understandably anxious and only reassured by listening to the baby’s heart beat monitor. Finally, when the hospital is at one of its busiest times for beds, Claire (24) arrives to have her second baby and she also has raised blood pressure. There are too many labours starting with too few midwives and anaesthetists available. But you can’t choose when your baby decides to appear.