Mom Drives Four Hours to Deliver Baby at Silver Cross Hospital

Pregnant with her second child, Kara Waack made a visit last fall to her Obstetrician, Dr. Jean Alexandre, in her hometown of downstate Quincy.

“Dr. Alexandre is like family,” said Waack. “When I was pregnant with my first child during COVID-19, it was a scary time, and I didn’t have much support. He was always asking me if I’m OK. He even came to visit me when I was working at a restaurant to make sure I was doing OK.”

She was shocked, however, when he told her he would be leaving Quincy to join Silver Cross Hospital two months from her due date.

“I could see the panic in her eyes,” said Dr. Alexandre. “But it was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.”

Waack jokingly asked if she could still see him at Silver Cross and have her baby delivered up there. “I told her, ‘Sure, so long as it’s safe.’ And her husband, Justin, was fine with it.”

So, Justin drove four hours from Quincy to New Lenox while Waack slept through the drive.

“The hospital is wonderful, and the staff is amazing,” she said. “When Eddie was born, he had some fluid in his lungs, so they transferred him to the NICU (Amy, Matthew and Jay Vana Neonatal Intensive Care Unit). “I couldn’t believe it. Nurses were coming in all the time to make sure we were OK and to let us know what was going on.Sometimes, Justin and I needed to get some rest. It was so nice knowing the nurses were taking good care of Eddie when we couldn’t be there.”

The NICU staff contacted a doctor in Quincy so they could follow up within a few days.

“It turns out, he was the pediatrician I used to go to,” Waack said. “Silver Cross took care of everything for us.”

“I’ve had other couples from Quincy check out Silver Cross and ask whether they could deliver up here,” said Dr. Alexandre. “Silver Cross is such a wonderful hospital. I am so happy to be here.”

For more information about the Women and Infant Services Birthing Center at Silver Cross Hospital, visit silvercross.org.

Silver Cross Hospital

1900 Silver Cross Blvd.

New Lenox, IL 60451

815-300-1100

www.silvercross.org