For Mother’s Day 2022, Jennifer Malagon, mother of five, had a special message of gratitude for the medical team at Baylor Scott & White – Fort Worth. “I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for them. I’m so thankful for them, Jennifer said.
When Jennifer envisioned her pregnancy with her fifth child, she never dreamt it would be a month after delivery before she was able to hold her baby.
The mother of four boys was tickled pink to learn she was expecting a daughter. But when she tested positive for COVID-19, she knew she was in a fight for not only her life, but that of her unborn daughter.
Eventually, when the ventilator wasn’t providing enough support to her heart and lungs, Jennifer was placed on ECMO (Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation). The highest level of life support, ECMO acts as a heart and lungs outside of the body.
Unfortunately, Jennifer’s health continued to deteriorate. As a last option, baby Mia was delivered by Cesarean section—nearly two months early—to give Jennifer’s body a chance to recover.
According to Jennifer’s obstetrician, Dr. Jennifer McLeland, “When baby Mia cried, we all took a deep breath. Mia was so strong. She thrived in the NICU.”
As Jennifer continued struggling to recover from COVID-19, she grew stronger each day. It wasn’t until Mia was one month old that Jennifer was able to hold her beautiful, resilient daughter.
Although Jennifer was the first mother at Baylor Scott & White – Fort Worth to deliver a baby while on this critical life support, others have followed.
Through the generosity of donors, the Foundation was able to purchase two additional ECMO machines to save lives.