Dominic Gekonge, a street vendor who sells smokies and boiled eggs in Nairobi CBD helped a woman deliver a breech baby on Sunday, March 31.
Narrating the rare experience, Gekonge said that the woman went into labor in town next to his smokie stand. He realized that other businesswomen panicked and asked him to go and fetch a doctor.
The 27-year-old businessman then rushed to a nearby clinic to ask for help, but the doctor he found told him that he was busy at the moment.
He went back to report that he did not find a doctor and realized that the baby was already coming out, with its feet first.
“When I came back, I found the women waiting for me to bring help, but I told them that the doctor I found was busy. At that moment, I looked at the woman in labor and realized that the baby was already coming out, feet first,” he said.
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Street Vendor Narrates Panick During Breech baby delivery
Recounting the event in an interview, Gekonge said his experience when his wife was delivering their baby played a key role. He used his memory of the steps the doctors followed when his wife was delivering their child to safely help the woman give birth.
Despite not having any medical skills, the businessman said that he was determined to help the mother and baby live, therefore he could not panic like the women at the scene.
“One of the two women who were there was worried because the baby was coming out with his legs and the head was still left inside. We were not sure that the baby would be able to breathe.”
“I asked one of the women to raise the pregnant women from her torso. I had seen that done to my wife when she was giving birth to our child. Further, I held the woman’s nose to allow her to breathe through her mouth. The women who were witnessing the ordeal started screaming helplessly,” he added.
When the child failed to cry after delivery as is the norm, he performed first aid on the child, using only the available resources including his smokie wrapping papers.
“I took the clips and tied the umbilical cord on both ends and cut with a razor. I remembered that a doctor lifted up my child in the delivery room and hit him from behind gently a couple of times until the child cried.
“Also I used the smokie wrapping papers to hold the baby and did the same thing. We wrapped the baby in a leso and called a taxi to take the mother and child to the hospital,” Gekonge added.
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Mother and Doctor Hail Praises at Gekonge
Following the incident, the mother and child received care from Eagle Hospital and made full recovery.
Mercy Mathai, the hospital’s Quality Assurance Officer and the mother, praised the smokie vendor for his bravery and care.
According to Mathai, breech birth is challenging even for medical practitioners.
“I do not know these people, but they helped me out and I am very grateful,” the mother stated.
“I salute Dominic. Being a man and they managed to deliver that breech baby, it takes the hand of God. They managed and the baby is okay, so they did a good job,” added Mathai.
