IT scares Kurt Nyholm to think about what could have happened to his newly born baby Asher Zane and to his partner Katharine [Kat] Turk.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
"It's unjust and unfair to do that to new parents," he said.
Not allowing parents in the Ulladulla district to give birth to their babies at the Milton Ulladulla Hospital is what he says is unjust and unfair.
He and Kat, when baby Asher Zane decided it was time to come into the world, had to rush away from their Mollymook home and down to the Moruya Hospital.
He is furious that locals are not allowed to give birth at the Milton Ulladulla Hospital.
Kurt points the blame for this situation right at the "decision-makers".
"They are playing with people's lives," he said.
"I would have loved to have had one of those decision-makers on the drive down with me - just to see what is happening."
He added their experience is something many others had also faced.
See the response from the Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District below.
Asher Zane [above] was born 8.21 am on December 16 is healthy and doing well.
Kat is also doing well and enjoying her time with Asher.
They will no doubt tell Asher about his dramatic birth.
The first time mum's waters broke around the 3am to 4am mark.
"Kat at 4.45am said 'it was time to go', Kurt said
"I was running around getting things ready and I rang ahead to let the hospital know we were on our way."
He also called Triple 0 and they headed down the highway.
"I was driving along - just got outside Ulladulla then things went boom," Kurt said.
Things moved along quicker - way quicker than Kurt and Kat wanted.
As they came towards Tabourie - "go faster" was the call from Kat.
Kurt was driving hard but normally - he wanted to drive as safe as he could and not place his family at risk.
Luckily the traffic at that time of the morning is light.
Thankfully, they also had a reliable car to drive.
They got towards East Lynne and "go faster and faster" was Kat's urgent request.
"I was literally looking at houses - to see if any lights were on," he said.
Kurt was not going to allow his baby to be born on the side of the road - and was thinking of going into someone's house to seek help.
They got to the hospital, just, and the baby was only centimetres from being born
Kurt said "as you would expect the birth was quick" and both mum and baby were good.
His head is still spinning when it comes to what could have happened.
"It was just me and the midwife at the birth," he said
"Another mother was in at the same time and she was having major issues.
"I was just thinking - what if they had to come as far as us?
"There could have been the loss of two lives that morning."
Baby Soli Adams should not have been born on the side of the Princes Highway, according to his parents Ryan and Anja.
He should have been born at the Milton Ulladulla Hospital - not down the road at Falls Creek at 7.50pm on Wednesday, April 14 at night.
Meanwhile, Kurt cannot fault the staff at the Moruya Hospital.
The midwife who was present at Asher's birth had just finished a 12-hour shift but stayed two more hours to be with Kat, Kurt and Asher.
Kurt does not want any other parents to have the same experience - he wants the Milton Ulladulla Hospital to be upgraded to a proper standard
"We have the worst hospital in NSW," he explained while comparing the area's wealth when it comes to real estate prices and tourist attractions to its sub-standard hospital.
As one of the "gateways" to the Shoalhaven, Kurt says needs an urgently upgraded hospital is needed.
He stressed the dedicated and hardworking staff at the Milton Ulladulla Hospital were not to blame for the situation.
Kurt suggested hospitals in developing worlds were better than Milton's.
He says the Milton/Ulladulla region has a growing and expanding population and needs a hospital that fits the community's needs.
Prior to Asher's birth, they received a letter from Dr Michael Holland informing them of his resignation effective from mid-February next year.
For the past 19-years, Dr Holland had provided obstetric and gynecological services to women of the Eurobodalla Shire and as far north as Milton-Ulladulla and to Eden in the south.
Kurt said Dr Holland's upcoming resignation was another reason why better maternity services were needed in the Ulladulla area.
Health service response
Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District Executive Director Clinical Operations, Margaret Martin, explains the background of the Milton Hospital's maternity section issue.
"In 2016, an extensive review of the Milton Ulladulla maternity service was carried out in response to concerns around the safety and 24/7 sustainability of the service," Ms Martin said.
"In the interests of safety, the decision was made to provide a Level 1 maternity service at Milton Ulladulla Hospital, with a focus on providing local antenatal (before birth) and postnatal (after birth) services by midwives, with complementing birthing services provided at Shoalhaven Hospital, under the care of a midwifery and obstetric team.
"A dedicated Midwifery Antenatal Postnatal Service (MAPS) has been established at Milton Ulladulla Hospital.
"MAPS focuses on continuity of care and involves two teams, each with three midwives, who provide all antenatal and postnatal care to their group of women.
"This service is open every day of the year.
"Planning continues for the future establishment of a Midwifery Group Practice (MGP) for women in the Shoalhaven region, which includes Milton Ulladulla.
"Under the MGP, each woman is allocated two midwives who provide her antenatal and postnatal care; one midwife would also be on call for her labour and birth at Shoalhaven Hospital."
