As reports surface of understaffing and equipment shortages at the Regina Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), a Weyburn mother is sharing her personal experience to highlight just how critical the facility is, not just to her family, but to the entire southeast Saskatchewan region.
Sharla Rich’s daughter Xola was born prematurely in August 2023 at just 27 weeks. What followed was a harrowing medical emergency that saw Sharla rushed to Regina by ambulance and placed in a medically induced coma due to severe complications.
“Had we not had the NICU in Regina, I most likely wouldn’t be here and my baby may not be here as well,” Sharla said in an emotional interview.
Xola would go on to spend 118 days in the NICU. Sharla, recovering from surgery, spent over a month in the hospital herself. In that time, she said the NICU nurses became more than just medical professionals; they became family.
“Those nurses were her family when I couldn’t be there,” Sharla explained. “They aren’t just doing their job. They’re there for the babies, and they’re there for us parents too.”
The Regina NICU is the only such unit serving southeast Saskatchewan, and Sharla said that reality makes the recent staffing issues especially concerning. She emphasized that for many parents, especially those who can’t stay nearby due to work or travel limitations, NICU nurses are the constant caregivers, educators, and emotional support.
“They’re going above and beyond what their job actually entails. I don’t know what I would have done without them,” she said.
Sharla is now calling for greater recognition of the work done by NICU nurses, including better pay and appreciation for their role in saving and shaping lives.
“A doctor might only be in the room for a few minutes. The nurses are with those babies from the time they’re born until they leave. They deserve more.”
As for Xola, she’s now thriving and is still remembered by every nurse who cared for her. Sharla and her daughter continue to visit the unit and stay in touch with the staff who played such a vital role in their story.
“They still care about how she’s doing,” she said. “They never stopped caring. But now we have to care for them, too.”