In late December, Sunstar Paramedics received a call that every crew is prepared for – but rarely receive – a woman going into labor. A Largo woman who was 36 weeks pregnant with twins was having complications during labor.

Paramedic David Sims and EMT Ken Skaggs performed their initial examination and realized that the woman had a prolapsed umbilical cord, which means the cord had been pushed through the cervix before the baby. The umbilical cord delivers oxygen and nutrients to the baby, and a prolapsed cord presses against the baby’s body during delivery, which can cut off the baby’s oxygen supply. The twins’ breech position caused the prolapsed cord.

Sims was able to delay the delivery of the babies to maintain their blood supply while they transported the woman to Morton Plant Hospital for an emergency C-section. The quick recognition of a potentially life-threatening condition and immediate treatment by Sims and Skaggs allowed the woman to safely deliver a healthy boy and girl.

The Sunstar Care Plus Award is an internal award used to recognize Sunstar Paramedics employees for their excellence in patient care, professionalism and efficiency. Award winners are nominated by their co-workers and selected by Sunstar’s employee engagement and retention committee.