First Baby Ever Born at Children's Hospital Colorado Heading Home
Doctors from Kaiser Permanente and Children's Hospital Colorado announced during a press conference on May 24 that the first baby to be delivered at Children's Hospital Colorado is going home. Khalil Essebar was born at Children's on Jan. 4, 2007, due to a heart condition that needed attention within minutes of his birth.
Kaiser Permanente Perinatologist Robert McDuffie, MD, is credited for recognizing a serious heart problem with the baby while performing an ultrasound during the pregnancy. Dr. McDuffie consulted with specialists, including Director of Children's Fetal Cardiology Adel Younoszai, MD, and together they determined the safest place to deliver was Children's Hospital Colorado. Nurses from the Labor and Delivery Department of Exempla Saint Joseph Hospital assisted along with Kaiser Permanente Obstetrician/Gynecologist Ernie Kandel, MD. Highly-trained pediatric specialists including Pediatric Cardiothoracic Surgeon Francois Lacour-Gayet, MD, were on hand, to determine the level of care Khalil needed immediately upon his birth.
Khalil Essebar is the firstborn child of Amal Darif and Hassan Essebar. He was born with a heart condition called Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome. In the nearly five months that Khalil has been hospitalized, he has undergone numerous surgeries.
Today Khalil goes home a strong 11 lbs. It's expected that he will need ongoing care, but the fact that he no longer requires 24-hour hospitalization is a significant step in his road to recovery.
Physician Background:
Francois Lacour-Gayet, MD, is the chair of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Children's Hospital Colorado. He is also section chief of Pediatric Cardiac Surgery within the division of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Department of Surgery of the University of Colorado School of Medicine. Dr. Lacour-Gayet performs up to 250 pediatric heart operations a year.
Robert McDuffie, MD, is a perinatologist with Kaiser Permanente Colorado. Perinatologists are specially trained obstetricians/gynecologists who take care of high risk pregnant women. He has practiced at Kaiser Permanente for 20 years.
Adel Younoszai, MD, is the director of Fetal Cardiology and director of Cardiac Imaging at Children's Hospital Colorado. He is also Associate Professor of Pediatric Cardiology at the University of Colorado School Medicine.
Medical Organizations
Children's Hospital Colorado is a leading pediatric health-care network dedicated 100 percent to caring for kids. It continues to be designated one of the nation's outstanding children's hospitals by U.S. News & World Report and Child Magazine. With more than 600 experienced experts representing the full spectrum of pediatric specialties, Children's is home to many nationally and internationally recognized medical and research programs. Children's provides complete pediatric care at its main campus and through a network of care that includes eleven Children's Care Centers and more than 400 outreach clinics.
Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, together with the Colorado Permanente Medical Group, form Kaiser Permanente, the largest private health care provider in Colorado. More than 480,000 members in the Denver/Boulder and Colorado Springs areas have access to care through an expanded suite of health care products. Kaiser Permanente physicians and care teams focus on prevention as well as managing disease, all in an effort to help patients live well and thrive.
