Baby girl Makah Galal arrived at 5:05 AM
Just a few hours into 2024, Richmond University Medical Center (RUMC) welcomed its first baby of the new year, Makah Galal. The bundle of joy arrived at 5:05 AM for proud parents Neanaah and Ahmed of Brooklyn. Makah weighed 7 pounds and was 20 inches in length. She is the couple’s second child.
“It’s wonderful, very wonderful,” said her proud father. The couple’s previous child is a boy, so he expressed his delight at now having the opportunity to raise both a boy and a girl. He said that Makah arrived slightly later than her expected due date.
Makah and her parents are resting comfortably in the two floor Richmond County Savings Foundation Mother/Baby Unit at RUMC. The unit features multiple birthing suites; a labor and delivery triage center; nearly 40 maternal care beds; and multiple nurse stations. RUMC’s medical staff throughout the unit includes board certified obstetricians and neonatologists as well as experienced nurses and specialists.
Nearly 3,000 newborns are welcomed into the world each year at RUMC, which is the only hospital on Staten Island to carry the “Baby Friendly” certification from the World Health Organization (WHO) and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). Since 2016, RUMC has been Staten Island’s only certified “Baby Friendly” hospital. RUMC is one of only 44 healthcare facilities in New York State with this certification and one of only 26 in New York City. The WHO and UNICEF launched the Baby-Friendly Initiative in 1991. The goal of the initiative is to protect, promote and support breastfeeding and the mother-infant bonding experience.
A major modernization project is currently underway in RUMC’s Mother/Baby Unit. Designed to enhance the family bonding experience, all rooms throughout the unit are being converted into single-bed suites, complete with new in-suite bathrooms, larger beds, showers, flooring and windows, among many other amenities. Each suite also has larger space for family and visitors. In addition to renovating the unit’s existing rooms to single occupancy, the hospital is also converting underutilized space in the unit to create new suites. This will enable RUMC to maintain its current bed capacity. Completion of the project is anticipated later this year.
The Mother/Baby Unit project is part of over $250 million in capital improvements currently underway at RUMC. Additional projects include, among others, the hospital’s new Medical Intensive Care Unit that opened in August of 2022, its new 35,000 sq. ft. James P. Molinaro Emergency Department that opened last January, and the new Lucille and Jay Chazanoff Surgical Pavilion that was unveiled with a ribbon cutting ceremony in mid-December.
Richmond University Medical Center (RUMC), is a not-for-profit healthcare provider serving the ethnically diverse community of Staten Island and its neighbors. We provide premier-quality patient care through a full spectrum of emergent, acute, primary, behavioral health and educational services. We do this in an environment that promotes the highest satisfaction among patients, families, physicians and staff. For more information call 1-718-818-1234 or visit www.rumcsi.org. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter.
