From apprehension to awe
North Vancouver physicians praise Royal Columbian’s NICU after premature birth of daughter It was a complete shock when Sarah Senft’s water broke. The North Shore family physician was not yet 30 weeks pregnant. She and her husband Riley, an anesthesiologist, were in California at the time for a family wedding. While the couple tried to stay calm, it was the start of a whirlwind of events that led them to be airlifted unexpectedly to Royal Columbian Hospital, where Zoe Senft was born several hours later, 10 weeks premature. Sarah says her pregnancy, up until then,
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had gone smoothly. An ultrasound just before the trip had found the umbilical cord had two vessels instead of the usual three. But Zoe’s weight at the time was just fine. After her water broke in the early morning, Sarah was transported to a nearby hospital with maternity services. Since she was only 29 weeks pregnant, the initial plan was to try to delay the birth for as long as possible. “I did have some contractions,” recalls
