Going into labor at 26 weeks and delivering a daughter a week later was not what Britney Vernon planned for her first child, but a nurse at Northside Hospital Cherokee made the experience much easier.
“My delivery, although very scary, was made easier by the Northside staff, more particular the nurse I had the night I delivered,” Vernon said.
That nurse was Brittany McFarland, a nightside labor and delivery nurse who’s been with Northside Cherokee since July 2014.
Delylah Ann was born April 11, 2022, to Britney and Billy Vernon. Delylah weighed just 2 pounds, 3 ounces, at birth, and measured 14 inches. Dr. Dominik Kissing was the obstetrician at delivery.
Britney Vernon said McFarland made her feel at ease through the process.
"She comforted me and assured me that we could make it through this,” Vernon said. “She never made me feel like I was asking too much as I was bedridden and needed help doing everything. She also wheeled me down to the postpartum floor, helped bathe me and then wheeled me up to the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) floor to meet my daughter with me and my husband. … She doesn’t know how much she helped the whole experience and that she will be someone I will never forget!”
Vernon said the doctors explained the procedures and listened to her concerns before delivery. “Even throughout the entire NICU journey of 80 days, the doctors called me every day to update,” she said. “The nurses never acted like I called too much because on days I couldn’t make it to the hospital to see my daughter, I would call about 10 times and they always made sure to listen to any concerns we had and to make us feel involved with my daughter’s care and treatment!”
Delylah Ann is now at home with her parents in Ranger, Georgia. She just turned a year old and is hitting all her milestones. Vernon credited Delylah’s aunt Lisa Green and great-aunt Teresa Thurston for being part of the team.
“I couldn’t have done this without the support of Northside Cherokee or our family and friends,” Vernon said.
