Byanca Tiggs Jackson, 34, of Chicago was willing to drive to Munster to get personalized care and attention that she feels she did not get some 10 years ago when she was pregnant with her son.
“Because of the number of patients in Chicago, you do not have a chance to build a personal relationship with your doctor,” she says. “I didn’t want to go through the same experience again with my second child. I lived in Dyer for a few years and liked the care I received from Dr. Gentile. I went back to see him. It really worked out in so many different ways that I can’t even believe it! My daughter, Marley, was born in August of 2018 at Community Hospital. She was 7 lb. 9 oz. at birth. We went through a lot just to get her here.”
At first Jackson says she had normal pregnancy symptoms like vomiting and nausea, but then she experienced bleeding. A fibroid that was small at the beginning of the pregnancy located on her uterus unexpectedly grew so big that it was tearing the placenta. There was only a window of time that allowed oxygen for the baby growing inside.
“I’m a person of faith,” Jackson says. “At that point, I knew God would take care of everything.”
Jackson was put on complete bedrest. Community Hospital’s maternal-fetal medicine specialists in partnership with University of Chicago Medicine continued to monitor the baby’s oxygen levels. She saw them three times a week from 29 weeks in the pregnancy until delivery at 39 weeks. These maternal-fetal specialists on staff work in tandem with the expectant mother’s primary care physician to provide counseling, screening and fetal diagnostic testing.
“There were so many people who cared for us during this time and came to support us,” Jackson says. “So many nurses on the team and imaging techs were reassuring, took time with me, were informative and attentive,” she says. “I couldn’t ask for more. The whole team was so welcoming and just a pleasure to be around. They treat you with respect and knew me by name and that made all the difference in my care.”
For more information about the services and programs available through the Family Birthing Centers of Community Healthcare System, visit COMHS.org/baby.
