A very special Father's Day

Deaf from birth, Michael’s biggest concern with becoming a parent was not being able to hear his baby when he needed him. “I was afraid I wouldn’t know the cues, and if his cries are loud or soft, or what is causing him to cry, or what he needs,” he said. “I don’t want my wife to be the only one who can take care of him. I want my baby to be able to rely on me.”

On Sunday, Michael Rawling celebrated his first Father’s Day with his 6-day old son. His wife, Ellen, gave birth to 9-pound, 10-ounce Phillip Michael Rawling on June 13 at UCF Lake Nona Hospital. As first-time parents, Ellen and Michael are in awe of their beautiful baby and grateful for their family-centered birth, especially the way the care team made sure Michael could experience every aspect of his son’s arrival to the fullest.

When beginning childbirth classes at the hospital, the couple shared Michael’s deafness with class instructor and Family Birthing Unit Nurse Amy Travis. Amy, Sally Robertson, director of women’s services, and the care team worked to ensure translation services were available, and arrangements made for an interpreter to be present during the couple’s stay through discharge.

During labor, Michael was able to help encourage Ellen, hold her hand and coach her as to what was happening. The interpreter was positioned behind Ellen’s shoulder so Michael was in the mix and could maintain eye contact with his wife. It was Michael who was with the baby throughout delivery and recovery.

“If I didn’t have the interpreter it would be hard to tell what was going on in the room,” Michael said. “Instead, I was aware of what was going on, and could really help my wife. It made a big difference.”

Ellen and Michael married at the beginning of the pandemic and like so many, the big dream wedding ended up an intimate and meaningful “just us” ceremony at the county courthouse.

The couple planned to have children right away, but after a few months found themselves struggling with infertility – a battle they had not expected. They began exploring treatment options and alternatives, yet felt confident they would one day have a baby. A UCF alumni, Ellen was so confident prior to becoming pregnant she would say, “I’m going to deliver at that UCF hospital.”

When they finally received positive pregnancy results, they decided the first course of business was calling UCF Lake Nona Hospital. “We were first time parents so didn’t know how it worked,” she said, “we just knew we wanted to have our baby here. The hospital registrar asked us who our physician was. When we said we hadn’t gotten that far yet, they let us know that it would be a good idea to get one, and that should be our next step. We found Dr. Dacha, who we instantly loved, and she recommended we deliver at UCF Lake Nona Hospital, so that sealed the deal.”

Ellen ended up going into labor two days before her scheduled induction. “Amy, Sally and Dr. Dacha worked to reschedule the sign language interpreter, and the team was amazing,” Ellen said. “They were great from the time that we got here at 2:30 in the morning, through it all. Dr. Pierre was awesome with my epidural, and everyone was just great. We just fell in love with the whole team!”

When Phillip made his arrival at 7:19 that evening, Ellen and Michael were overcome with emotion.

“It’s a boy! It’s a boy! It’s a boy!” Michael told Ellen, as the couple had chosen to not know the baby’s gender prior to delivery.

“I was just ecstatic and broke into tears,” Michael said. “Just like Ellen, I was eagerly awaiting Phillip’s arrival the last few weeks and when that day finally came, I was thrilled to hold my son.”

“Having an in-person interpreter was absolutely critical to successful communications between me, Ellen and doctors and nurses during the delivery,” Michael said. “Without that interpreter, I would have easily been left out or very delayed in terms of progress and I wouldn’t have had an active role in support of my wife and our son’s delivery.”

Ellen and Michael were very appreciative of the hospital facility and the care team.

“Everyone knew their roles and remained focused on ensuring a safe delivery of a healthy baby,” Michael said. “At the same time, they were very accommodating to Ellen’s needs as well as mine from the moment we arrived until discharge. The care and compassion of each and every staff member has been second to none. We are deeply appreciative of each and every doctor, nurse and staff member we’ve worked with.”