First citizen of 2007 arrives

Infant is 600th delivery for nurse-midwife Honesdale - A lot of numbers came together at Wayne Memorial on the first day of the new year. Little Dalyla Knapp became the region’s first baby of 2007 when she arrived in the world at 2:07 a.m., weighing 7 pounds, 2 ounces. The Hawley infant also marked a milestone for her deliverer. Dalyla is the 600th child to be delivered by certified nurse-midwife Kimlyn Patten of Women’s Health Care in Honesdale. Both Patten and Dalyla’s mother Ellen were surprised and ecstatic. “I never made a big thing of New Year’s before, but now I will,” said the 25 year old mom. “And I’ve never had a nurse midwife before, but I loved having Kim here.” Patten just happened to be the Women’s Health Care staffer on call this weekend. Dr. Hoon Yoo is Ellen’s obstetrician, though Patten had seen the patient during her pregnancy. “This was really a beautiful birth, it went very smoothly,” said Patten, who has been delivering babies at Wayne Memorial since 1999. Dalyla (pronounced Delilah) joins big sister Kaitlyn, age 6, and dad Bernard at home. “Kaitlyn wanted to hold the baby right away. She’s really excited to have a little sister,” her mom said. While Kaitlyn got to see her new sister soon after she was born, Patten was there from the moment Ellen was admitted at 4 p.m. Sunday until the birth just after 2 a.m., and then a few more hours. “I didn’t get home until 11:30 a.m. Monday. I did sleep for a half hour, though, from 11:45 p.m. until 12:15. I missed the ball drop, but I was wide awake for the really exciting event.” Patten is no stranger to staying overnight in a hospital room. “The longest labor I ever attended was 36 hours,” she recalled, adding “and I’d do it again.” Born and raised in Honesdale, Patten started out as a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) at Wayne Memorial in 1979. The hospital helped her finish nursing school through its tuition reimbursement program. After receiving her Registered Nurse (RN) degree, Patten obtained a Masters in the Science of Nursing (MSN) and then certification as a nurse-midwife. “I really love what I do. Every baby is a rush for me, a real adrenaline high,” explained the 48 year-old mother of one grown son. Patten said her biggest “rush” was delivering her sister’s baby and a niece’s and, after that, delivering three babies in one family. “Over the years, there have been scary moments, sure. Things during labor can change radically in an instant. And that’s one reason I choose to work in a hospital setting,” explained Patten. “You can have a completely natural childbirth in a hospital but if something goes wrong, you have all the medical expertise and technology right here. You can be wheeled into surgery or whatever immediately.” Patten admitted that her very first delivery was “kinda scary,” but went so well the family named the baby “Kim” after her. Baby number 600 found Patten much more confident in her profession, and the family, too, had a compliment for her. “If I have another baby,” said Ellen, “I am definitely going to have a nurse midwife again. It was a good experience.”