Telephone help

Mathilda was in a hurry: Dad as obstetrician

The young family and the Red Cross emergency services

(Bild: Rotes Kreuz Graz-Umgebung)

Little Mathilda was in a hurry! During a lightning birth in Gratwein-Straßengel, Styria, dad unexpectedly became a midwife. He received help from a member of the Red Cross who was on hand by phone. Mom and baby are fine!

With the words "Please come quickly, my wife is having a baby and the head can already be seen", an emergency call was received by the Styrian Red Cross rescue control center in the early hours of 24 September. The call came from Nils Lietzow-Wellenhof from Gratwein-Straßengel, north of Graz. The emergency services were immediately dispatched to the address given. By chance, the Red Cross vehicle from Graz-Umgebung happened to be in the area - but they still didn't arrive in time.

Red Cross helped by telephone
Because little Mathilda wanted to see the light of day immediately! And so the father became a midwife: "It was very exciting for me, as I had never experienced a situation like this before. Nevertheless, it was a very special experience to accompany my own daughter into the world!" said father Nils Lietzow-Wellenhof. He was supported by his mother-in-law, who was present at the young parents' home at the time. But above all, Florian Ofner from the Styrian rescue coordination center also helped him, guiding the young father through the birth on the phone and giving him first aid instructions. Together they were able to accompany Mathilda into life.

Gernot Vorraber (Red Cross Graz-Umgebung), Florian Ofner (Styria Rescue Coordination Center), Nils Lietzow-Wellenhof, Anna Lietzow-Wellenhof with little Oskar and baby Mathilda, Astrid Hofmann-Wellenhof, Felizitas Hermann (Red Cross Graz-Umgebung), Maria Prietl (Red Cross Graz-Umgebung)

(Bild: Rotes Kreuz Graz-Umgebung)

When the first rescue vehicle arrived, the baby had already been born. Mother and child were then given first aid by the rescue team and the emergency doctor and taken to the University Hospital in Graz. "Attending a birth over the phone is not an everyday occurrence for us either," says Florian Ofner. "Of course, we are also trained and prepared for such situations. One of our core tasks is to assist people who call the emergency services in every conceivable situation and to look after them until our emergency services arrive and can take over on site. Nevertheless, I was happy when I heard the baby crying on the phone," says Florian Ofner about this special call.

Little Mathilda weighed 4190 g after birth and was 54 cm tall. The mother, Anna Lietzow-Wellenhof, and the baby are doing very well and have already been able to leave the hospital.