[January 01, 2013]

The Women's Hospital at Saddleback Memorial Welcomes First Baby Born in its 25th Anniversary Year

The Women's Hospital at Saddleback Memorial Medical Center welcomed the first baby born in its 25^th anniversary year on January 1, 2013, at 3:28 AM. Baby girl Skylar Eliza Allen was born to parents Kanita and Terry Allen, who reside in Aliso Viejo. She weighed in at 7 lbs. 8 oz and measures 19.02 inches.

The most recent addition to the Allen family, Skylar joins sister Kyla Allen, age 7, and brother Ryder Allen, age 5, who were also born at The Women's Hospital at Saddleback Memorial.

"Delivering our first baby of the New Year is always an exciting event for our hospital, and Skylar's arrival is especially thrilling because she is the first birth of our 25^th anniversary year," said Steve Geidt, Saddleback Memorial's CEO.

The Women's Hospital at Saddleback Memorial was founded in 1988 to provide sophisticated obstetrics and maternity services to the growing community in South Orange (News - Alert) County. Since its opening, more than 50,000 babies have been born at the facility.

At a time when a women's hospital was a new idea, Saddleback Memorial's facility was the first hospital in the area to have a Level 3 neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), and to have perinatologists and anesthesiologists available 24 hours a day for mothers who were giving birth. It was also one of the first hospitals in the nation to have the capability for women to experience labor, delivery, recovery and post-partum care in one room, helping families to bond and to keep their babies in their rooms instead of in a separate nursery.

"Our goal in designing The Women's Hospital was to create the perfect place to have ababy," noted Geidt. "Because we started from the ground up in our planning, we were able to incorporate many new features that are still distinctive to our hospital, and to design the facility and our programs so that the experience of giving birth is all about the mothers, the babies, and their families."

Over the years, the hospital's staff has gained extensive experience in the delivery of multiple births - twins, triplets, quadruplets and quintuplets. The hospital has also been a pioneer in supporting births by surrogate moms, so that couples who cannot have children on their own can become a family through this option. The hospital's experienced staff currently offers a wide range of prenatal classes including a "Diabetes during Pregnancy" program.

"Since we opened, we have continued to update and refine our services to provide a safe, comfortable and relaxing environment for our patients," said David Lagrew, M.D., a noted perinatologist who served as medical director of The Women's Hospital for two decades. "Our commitment to providing the best possible experience for our patients and their families-while using state-of-the-art technology in a family setting-has put us at the forefront of women's healthcare today."

In 2013, the Women's Hospital will continue to celebrate its 25^th anniversary with special events and programs and a theme of "Special Deliveries. Every Day. For 25 Years." Anniversary events will be held around the actual date that the hospital opened, in early May.

For additional information about The Women's Hospital at Saddleback Memorial, visit memorialcare.org/saddlebackbaby.

About Saddleback Memorial Medical Center

With campuses in Laguna Hills and San Clemente, Saddleback Memorial provides exceptional medical expertise across a range of treatment areas including cancer, stroke, and cardiac care. Innovations like robotic surgery, low dose CT, and dedicated breast MRI set us apart. In addition, The Women's Hospital at Saddleback Memorial - Laguna Hills offers special comfort and care to new mothers and their babies. A proud member of the MemorialCare Health System and named Best Regional Hospital by U.S. News & World Report for the past two years, Saddleback Memorial continues to provide comprehensive care for patients at every stage of their lives. For more information, go to www.memorialcare.org/saddleback.

About MemorialCare Health System

MemorialCare Health System is a not-for profit, integrated delivery system that includes five top hospitals - Long Beach Memorial, Miller Children's Hospital Long Beach, Community Hospital Long Beach, Orange Coast Memorial, and Saddleback Memorial; three medical groups - MemorialCare Medical Group, Memorial Prompt Care, and Specialty Physicians of Long Beach; an Independent Practice Association (IPA) Greater Newport Physicians; MemorialCare HealthExpress retail clinics; and numerous outpatient health centers throughout the Southland. For more information, go to www.memorialcare.org.

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