Two New Year’s babies born at New Amsterdam Hospital

The New Year began on a joyful note at the New Amsterdam Public Hospital, where two healthy babies were delivered on New Year’s Day, bringing smiles to families and healthcare workers alike.

Twenty-three-year-old Shaneeza Manumthu of Rose Hall Town, Corentyne Berbice, welcomed her second child in the early hours of Thursday morning. She recounted that just before midnight on December 31, she felt an urgent need to use the bathroom but soon realised she was bleeding, prompting her to rush to the hospital.

Although she had expected her baby to arrive a day earlier, Shaneeza gave birth at 2:41 a.m. on January 1 to a baby girl via spontaneous vaginal delivery. Beaming with happiness, she said she was especially pleased that her daughter arrived on New Year’s Day, a wish shared by the child’s father.

“I want to thank the nurse for helping me out a lot to get the baby safe,” she said.

Later that afternoon, at approximately 3:45 p.m., 27-year-old Akesha Gordon of El Dorado Village, West Coast Berbice, delivered a baby boy. At the time of a media visit, Gordon was still in recovery and had not yet been transferred to the maternity ward.

Sister Kesha Bender of the hospital’s Maternity Ward used the occasion to encourage new mothers to commit to breastfeeding for the first six months. She explained that breastfeeding allows mothers to pass vital immunity to their babies, strengthening their immune systems and ensuring proper nutrition.

For mothers who may experience difficulty breastfeeding directly, Bender advised that pumping and storing breast milk in a bottle is a helpful alternative, once the mother maintains a healthy diet.

To mark the special occasion, hampers were presented to both mothers in celebration of the first births at the hospital for 2026.