Skype Brings Military Dad to Birth of Child

The video conferencing technology, called Skype, allowed Corporal Alexander Moore to witness firsthand the birth of his son from the Middle East. Skype permitted Moore to watch while Jeffrey Knobloch, DO, and Grinnell Regional Medical Center’s Kintzinger Women’s Health Center staff delivered the couple’s first child on Sunday, July 18. Moore’s wife, Lené Moore, 22, gave birth to their son, Gabriel James.

“It’s really amazing that Alex could be so far away and still be a part of the birth of our son,” Lené says. “He was so encouraging and telling me I was doing a great job, even when he was in a time zone nine hours ahead of us.”

Cpl. Moore, 22, serves in the U.S. Army. He was deployed to the Middle East in June, just a month before the baby’s due date. The couple was stationed in Lawton, Okla. Upon Moore’s deployment, his wife returned to her hometown of Brooklyn to be with her parents, Rusty and Marie Hedlund.

Cpl. Moore watched during the six-plus-hour labor of the delivery. Gabrielle weighted 7 pounds, 5 ounces. GRMC’s labor, delivery, postpartum large rooms allowed Lené’s mother, Marie, the space and wireless internet connection to keep dad up to date with the Skype technology.

“With today’s technology in our personal lives, the use of Skype seemed like a logical thing. I haven’t delivered with a father watching via Skype before,” says Knobloch, Grinnell Family Care. “I just kept hoping the technology would work. A few times connection was dropped. Lené’s mother took care of the computer and connections.”

The GRMC nursing staff took the technology all in stride.

“We embrace technology with every delivery to ensure the baby and mother are progressing and delivering well. This technology has new meaning by allowing someone who is serving our country to also experience being a part of his child’s birth. This was a special delivery,” says GRMC Nurse Manager Sheryl Baarda, RN.

Alexander Moore is originally from Marshalltown. Paternal grandparents are Paul and Vera Peglow and Dann and Diana Moore, Marshalltown.

Here is the video that appeared on KCCI.