Twin Girls born at 22 weeks at Ascension St. Joseph Beat the Odds

Calvena Stone remembers the rush of emotions she felt when she learned she was expecting twins. “When my ultrasound results were confirmed, I felt overwhelmed, but in a good way,” she said.

Already a mother of two, Stone anticipated the usual rhythms of pregnancy, morning sickness, fatigue and routine prenatal visits. What she did not expect was preterm labor just past the halfway point. She began noticing a concerning pattern. “My stomach would get hard, then soft, then hard again, every few minutes,” Stone said. “I knew it was way too early to be having contractions.”

Her husband, Chino Moore, drove her to Ascension St. Joseph Hospital in Milwaukee, where physicians determined she was already dilated. The babies were coming far sooner than expected, and Stone underwent an emergency cesarean section.

“When the doctor told me what was going on, I immediately started crying,” Stone said. I had no clue whether the girls were going to make it or not.”

Camiya and Cameya Moore were born at just 22.6 weeks’ gestation, more than four months before their anticipated due date. Camiya weighed 15.9 ounces and Cameya weighed 1 pound, 3 ounces. Infants born at 22 weeks face significant odds; survival rates are estimated at about 25 percent and are even lower for twins, according to the Academy of Pediatrics.

“The lungs and brain are the two most underdeveloped organs when a baby is born at 22 weeks,” Ascension St. Joseph NICU director and neonatologist Dr. Daniel Murphy said. “They were tough little girls.”

Both newborns were admitted immediately to the hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit, where they received highly specialized, around-the-clock care. They required oxygen support as their lungs matured and were cared for in isolettes to protect them from infection. Cameya also underwent a specialized procedure to repair a heart defect, which was successful.

“We knew there was a chance we’d lose them, but my husband and I remained hopeful,” Stone said. “While they were in the hospital, we visited Camiya and Cameya whenever we could. Watching them fight for their lives and be strong, made us strong too.”

Over the next several months, Ascension St. Joseph NICU nurses Kelly Baker, RN, and Kathy Tuscany, RN, served as the twins’ primary nurses, guiding them through the inevitable setbacks and celebrating the milestones.

“I got to a point where I started calling them, my girls,” Kathy Tuscany, RN said. “The goal is to get them better and have them go home to their parents. Healing a patient goes beyond just medical intervention, we also focus on building a relationship and bonding with our patients. During my shifts, I began reading to Camiya when she was done eating.”

Baker cared for Cameya from her first day of life through discharge. “I fell in love with her right away,” Kelly Baker, RN said. “From the start, she showed a lot of personality. I remember Calvena and Chino telling the girls how proud they were of them during their visits.”

For Stone and Moore, progress came in moments many parents take for granted.

“We cherished the firsts,” Stone said. “When we were finally able to hold them, bottle-feed them, change their diapers; we had to wait months for those moments.”

After months of steady progress, the family finally received the news they had been hoping for: both girls were strong enough to go home.

“It was incredibly rewarding to take care of Cameya and Camiya,” Baker said. “These are the types of stories that stay with me, and the reason I do what I do. Our goal is to help heal our patients so that they are able to go home to their families and live a full life.”

Today, the twins continue to thrive. They attend regular follow-up appointments to monitor their growth and development and their care team remains encouraged by their progress.

“When a baby is born that early, the journey doesn’t end at discharge,” Dr. Murphy said. “We’re grateful for the outcome and proud of the care our team provided.”

For Stone, the transformation is nothing short of remarkable.

“I want to thank the doctors and nurses at Ascension St. Joseph for not giving up on our girls, and giving them a chance to live,” Stone said through tears. “Working in the NICU is not an easy job, and they treated our girls like they were their own and I am so grateful.”