Midwife Dot McCorquodale delivered the little baby girl, and 28 years later, on September 20, the pair celebrated Luci’s birthday together back where it all began – in the maternity ward. 

Luci was the only baby born that day in 1989 and the memory stayed with Dot. 

Luci began her student midwife training in 2013 at Shoalhaven Hospital. It wasn’t long before Dot introduced herself. 

“Dot came up to me on my first day and said ‘I think I delivered you and your sister’,” Luci said. 

Luci’s parents had both worked at Shoalhaven Hospital and Luci herself grew up in Nowra. While she was already well-known with staff, Dot said seeing one of the babies she delivered enter the field she loves so much had never crossed her mind. 

“It wasn’t anything I ever gave a thought, that one of the babies would come back and be trained here,” Dot said. 

“Luci said to me I was the first one to put my hand on her head, and look at the direction it has taken her. It’s wonderful.” 

Dot began her midwifery training in 1979 at the Mater Hospital in Crows Nest. 

After getting married and moving to the local region she took a midwife position at Shoalhaven Hospital in July 1980. 

While she’s delivered countless babies over the years, Dot said it’s still an honour to be involved in such a special moment. 

“I just think it’s such a wonderful privilege and an honour to be able to look after women and families,” she said. 

“I think of the famous John F. Kennedy quote ‘ ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country’ and in my mind that applies to all facets of health care, from newborn babies to geriatric patients and people suffering cancer – it’s all about the health care workers doing what they can for the patients.’

‘I don’t have midwifery, it has me.” 

Dot was 33-years-old when she delivered Luci and nine years into her career. 

She’s seen many changes along the way, including more intervention in birthing and labor, increased monitoring and prenatal testing, and a higher intervention rate. 

Dot now does the home visiting program and enjoys helping mothers and their families in the first few weeks following the birth. 

While she plans to retire next year, she’s happy to hand the reins over to Luci. 

“I feel privileged to have such a lengthy career with mothers and babies and families,” Dot said. 

Luci is similarly passionate about the industry and hopes to continue for a long time to come. 

“It’s a really nice part of nursing to a part of. It’s so special, bringing a new baby into the world,” she said.

Dot will leave Luci will a particularly fond memory. 

“Babies are given a score out of 10 when they’re born on things like colour tone and they often get a nine and nine but Dot gave me a perfect 10,” Luci laughed.