S2 Episode 6: In Tandem. Premature Twins.

As a senior paediatric and Special Care Nursery (SCN) nurse for 16 years, Gemma knew all there is to know about looking after premature and unwell babies. But when she discovered she was pregnant with twins, she was suddenly faced with the possibility of having her own complicated pregnancy and preterm babies. Twins pregnancies are at a significantly higher risk of being born early, with around half of twins arriving less than 37 weeks. One in ten sets of twins are born very early, at less than 32 weeks gestation. In this episode, Gemma tells her story of her twin pregnancy, complicated by threatened premature labour, decreased fetal movements, and placental complications, which led to the emergency preterm birth of her baby boy Lennox and baby girl Pippa. Gemma then takes us through her experience of the SCN journey as a mother, and how it differed from being on the other side of the clinician / patient divide. Gemma shares her insights into what it is like to have two babies in SCN, the challenges of feeding and caring for two premature babies, and what she has learnt to guide her as she continues to look after families with their own premature and unwell babies.