Govt will be co-parents to sextuplets—PM

Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar says the State will be co-parents of T&T’s historic sextuplets and has pledged to deliver financial assistance to the children’s central Trinidad parents. Yesterday, Persad-Bissessar, in acknowledging the financial burden facing the parents of the babies, said: “We will stand by as co-parents, as members of the State, to give assistance there.” 

The PM was speaking following the formal opening of the National Energy Skills Centre’s (NESC) Debe Campus. She said the babies were historic not just for T&T but for the Caribbean region. She acknowledged it was going to be a challenge for the babies’ parents to raise them but assured “the State will give whatever assistance we can.” Persad-Bissessar said Minister of Health Dr Fuad Khan had been seeking to ensure everything was in place to take care of the babies.

On Monday, the first sextuplets in the Caribbean was delivered at the Maternity Hospital of the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex, Mt Hope. The six babies—three boys and three girls—were delivered via caesarian section. They were born prematurely and are on ventilator support since their weight ranges from one pound, nine ounces to three pounds. 

The 28-year-old mother was due to deliver the babies on March 14 but doctors had to perform the emergency surgery because her condition deteriorated and she had problems breathing. Apart from the historic birth the doctors hailed another milestone in the delivery, as, they said, all babies were taken out of their mother's womb in three minutes. Yesterday, the babies were being carefully monitored for signs of infection at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the hospital.