The Almonte Hospital's mystery March baby boom
This spring has been full of life in Almonte, as the local hospital has seen its biggest baby boom in recent memory.
Dr. Melanie Fortune, the Almonte General Hospital's lead of family medicine obstetrics says they averaged more than one birth per day.
- Sign up now for daily CTV News Ottawa newsletters
- The information you need to know, sent directly to you: Download the CTV News App
"We had about 33 babies born in March, which is at least 50 per cent more than what I believe we saw in the year prior," said Fortune.
"So the thing about babies is they don't arrive on schedule and they don't arrive evenly distributed," added Mary Wilson Trider, the hospital's president and CEO. "So we had days that were really crazy because we had five or six."
Dr. Fortune says the new life is great for the community.
"We slept less, we probably ate less, and saw our own families less. But for us it's the reason we do this job," she said.
Fortune reckons the hospital delivered more girls than boys in March.
But the mystery remains as to why March was such a bountiful month for babies in Almonte.
"Usually we have increased births in September, August, those kinds of times," says Fortune. "But there is no rhyme or reason. We had more in February too; it was a fairly busy month as well."
Ottawa mother Laura Dangerfield gave birth to her fourth child, Ezra, in Almonte, just catching the tail end of the baby boom.
"We were induced here on March 31st, and then he came on April 1st," she tells CTV News.
Dangerfield says word of mouth recommended that she give birth to her fourth child in Almonte, and she believes the high level of care may be the reason so many more babies are arriving in the Ottawa Valley hospital.
"When I was here, it wasn't too busy, or at least it didn't seem that way. I think the care here — you wouldn't have known that they were as busy as they were."
"We've got a terrific five bed unit," adds Wilson Trider. "And we are the only obstetrics unit in the Champlain region between Pembroke and the Queensway Carleton Hospital."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Blaine Higgs 'furious' over sexual education presentation
New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs has shared his anger on social media over a presentation in at least four high schools.
Grayson Murray's parents say the two-time PGA Tour winner died of suicide
Grayson Murray's parents said Sunday their 30-year-old son took his own life, just one day after he withdrew from a PGA Tour event.
The dreams of a 60-year-old beauty contestant come to an abrupt end in Argentina
A 60-year-old woman saw her dreams of becoming the oldest Miss Universe contestant in history melt away in a haze of sequins and selfies Saturday at Argentina’s annual beauty pageant.
North Korea informs Japan of a plan to launch military spy satellite
North Korea has told Japan it plans to launch a satellite by early next week, an apparent effort to put its second military spy satellite into orbit.
2 died in plane crash near Squamish, B.C., police confirm
Two people died after a plane went down in a remote area near Squamish, B.C. on Friday, authorities have confirmed.
Driver, 18, gets $3,000 ticket, 32 demerit points after speeding on Laval boulevard
A young driver received a hefty fine from Laval police after they say he was driving nearly 100 km/h over the posted speed limit.
Are you a loud snorer? You could have sleep apnea
You'll have a lot more energy throughout the day if you get a good night's sleep, but not everyone does due to a medical condition.
At least 15 dead after severe weather carves path of ruin across multiple U.S. states in the South
Powerful storms killed at least 15 people and left a wide trail of destruction Sunday across Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas during the latest deadly weather to strike the central U.S.
Some birds may use 'mental time travel,' study finds
Real quick — what did you have for lunch yesterday? Were you with anyone? Where were you? Can you picture the scene? The ability to remember things that happened to you in the past, especially to go back and recall little incidental details, is a hallmark of what psychologists call episodic memory — and new research indicates that it’s an ability humans may share with birds called Eurasian jays.