I have watched the maternal mortality rate go up for many years, but since I was able to deliver 6000 babies without losing any mothers, I wanted to take the time to think about why this might be and offer information about some of the things I had learned to pregnant women and their families. The good news is that there are success stories. When I decided to create a video to help pregnant women make choices about what kind of pregnancy and delivery they wanted, I knew immediately that I wanted to interview the Powells.
Twenty-two years ago I delivered a set of quadruplets with parents, Sandy and Doug Powell. Sandy was kind enough to send me pictures of the four babies, Ashley, Samantha, Matt, and Andrea (left to right in the picture), for many years.
I was delighted when Sandy and Doug Powell agreed to be interviewed, and said their four children would like to be included in the conversation, which was the icing on the cake.
The Powells tell their stories, ranging from poignant to scary to humorous, ending up with an hour of interview film. I am well aware many people can’t sit through an hour of interview tape, so I have had the tape transcribed. For those of you who prefer to read rather than watch a video, you may find the transcribed interview here.
Congratulations to the Powell family for a job well done!