Marta Montoya, MSN, RNC-OB/INPT

I am writing this on behalf of my wife who delivered our daughter yesterday at Advocate Illinois Masonic. My wife had a very difficult labor that featured over 3 hours of pushing, with very little progress. It appeared a virtual certainty that we would be headed to the OR for a c-section, which, while I’m sure would have ultimately been a fine outcome, was something my wife was deeply afraid of going into labor and really wanted to avoid.

While Marta was incredibly supportive, comforting, and compassionate throughout the labor process, her determination to do everything possible to try to make a vaginal delivery a reality was extraordinary. While the baby was struggling to descend, and the rest of the delivery room seemed to be resigned to the fact that we’d likely need to make our way to the OR, Marta worked with my wife to shift positions, continually adjust, and keep trying new interventions to promote the baby’s descent. Ultimately, the baby descended enough that the doctor was able to execute a vacuum-assisted vaginal delivery, an incredible outcome.

I’m utterly convinced that my wife would have ended up with a c-section rather than delivering our daughter vaginally with 99% of other nurses in the room. I’m a former Marine, and not an emotional man, but I have tears in my eyes thinking about this woman’s commitment and dedication to what she was doing. I’ve never felt so grateful or appreciative of someone for doing their job in a professional setting in my life, and I truly feel she went far above and beyond any reasonable expectation. I can’t advocate strongly enough for recognition and reward for the absolutely incredible job that she did.