‘My worst fear was coming true: labor and the virus’

Katie Glenn, 35, a first-time mom, was already nervous about labor, childbirth and having her labor induced.

But that nervousness shot up to actual fright when Glenn, at Silver Cross Hospital in New Lenox with her contractions just starting, saw a nurse walk into her room in full PPE and say, “You have COVID.”

The nurse was actually Glenn’s nurse Peggy Condon, whom Glenn didn’t recognize with all the PPE. Condon, a mother of two young children, stayed with Glenn and supported her throughout most of her labor, Glenn said.

Glenn, an Orland Park resident, subsequently nominated Condon for the hospital’s DAISY Award, an international award that recognizes a nurse’s “skillful, compassionate care,” according to the Silver Cross website.

Condon, who said she just started working at Silver Cross in August, received the award in March.

In her nomination letter, Glenn wrote, “I broke down crying immediately. It’s hard to put into words what happened next but without fear in her she came over to my bed, sat with me, and held my hands as I cried. My worst fear was coming true-labor and the virus. As she held me, she reassured me that my birth plan would be the same. My immediate response was for her to protect herself and her family and that I couldn’t infect her. She told me she would not leave me and that she was vaccinated.”

‘What if he wasn’t allowed to be in the room with me?’

Glenn said she and her partner, Bob Morack, had tried for more than a year to become pregnant and even consulted with a fertility specialist, which is why Glenn was surprised – and thrilled – when she learned on June 8, her birthday, that she was expecting.

“I can honestly say that, at first, I didn’t think about the pandemic,” Glenn said. “I was just so excited to be pregnant.”

Glenn said it was easy to control her environment and stay home during the summer. But she had some trepidations about the fall since she and Morack both work in the education profession, she said.

“Things got really crazy with so many unknowns with the reopening of school and what that would like,” Glenn said.

Except for Morack not being able to accompany Glenn on prenatal visits, Glenn said her visits were typical prenatal visits. Because of her age, the plan was to induce labor once Glenn reached 39 weeks gestation.

Glenn said she and Morack were both “big babies” at birth, so Glenn was fine with that plan. But as the day approached, Glenn’s fears flared.

“I was really scared either one of us would get COVID,” Glenn said. “What if he wasn’t allowed to be in the room with me?”

Glenn said after Condon broke the news to Glenn and Glenn started crying, Condon sat next to Glenn, held her hands and reassured Glenn that nothing was changing. Glenn was still having a baby today.

“She immediately put me at ease,” Glenn said.

Condon said that, although it’s nice to be recognized, she didn’t treat Glenn in an extraordinary way.

“I try to give all my patients the absolute best care that I can,” Condon said. “I think they take their cue form you. Even if it’s a crisis and my heart is racing a little, I never want them to see that. I just have a plan; I know the plan; and I make sure they understand the plan. And I give them all the reassurance that I can.”

Condon feels “knowledge is power” and that her confidence, combined with information on what is happening in the moment, can help patients feel comfortable with the situation. So Condon’s attitude with Glenn was, “You’re going to have a baby and let’s do it together.”

“COVID was not going to stop the baby from coming,” Condon said.

Morack was allowed to remain in the room, too, Glenn said, because he didn’t have any symptoms. However, he wasn’t allowed to leave. Morack also wasn’t tested because he wasn’t the hospital’s patient; Glenn was the patient, Glenn added.

“We were in this room the whole time,” Glenn said. “The nurses had to come in with full gear to drop off food.”

Glenn wrote in her nomination letter that, as labor progressed, Condon remained present to Glenn, “not just physically but emotionally,” especially since Glenn had the additional stress of laboring with a facemask on, she said.

“As I was still worrying about the virus she continued to listen and helped me put it in the back of my mind so I could focus on my labor,” Glenn wrote. “She talked me through the pain from the contractions and as I was getting the epidural, she allowed me to hold onto her arms.

“My labor went on for 17 hours and although her shift ended before the baby was born, she assured me she would come back to see me afterwards during her next shift and she did. She was there every step of the way. I couldn’t have gotten through that experience without her, I have no doubt about that.”

Tenley Morack was born on Jan 28 and weighed 9 pounds, Glenn said.

“If she’d stayed inside another week, she could have been 10 pounds,” Glenn said.

Three days later, the new family of three went home.

Looking back, Glenn wonders if she’d missed the signs of COVID-19. She did have fatigue, but she chalked that up to being nine months pregnant. By the time Glenn tested negative for the virus, Morack did have symptoms and wound up being positive, she said.

The best part about testing negative for COVID-19? Glenn could finally hold Tenley close and give her that first kiss.

“She’s perfect,” Glenn said. “I’m lucky to be her mommy. I love her so much.”