February 14, 2023
London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) is celebrating an exciting milestone: last year, the hospital delivered a record number of babies between January 1 and December 31. In total, there were 6,139 births, a three per cent increase from LHSC’s previous record of 5,964 set in 2021.
Despite the high volume of deliveries last year’s “baby boom” created, the hospital was able to ensure expectant patients continued to receive high-quality care. This included prioritizing cases based on level of patient need, adding an additional triage clinic to alleviate wait times and continuing to offer triage support for urgent medical concerns 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
“Seeing a record number of births at LHSC this past year does not come without its challenges,” says Amanda Williams, Director of the Women’s Care Program at LHSC. “We are so thankful to our staff for their hard work and dedication to patient care amid the pressures this volume of deliveries had on our system. This milestone is truly an acknowledgement of the expertise and quality of care our team continues to provide to expectant parents across our region.”
Serving as one of the largest, single-site birth units in Canada, LHSC supports care and delivery for pregnant people who call London home as well as many patients from surrounding communities across the province. In 2022, approximately 69 per cent of deliveries were London-based patients, 18 per cent were from Southwestern Ontario, 11 per cent were from Middlesex County, and 2 per cent were from other regions across the province.
“Welcoming a new baby is a very exciting time for parents,” says Nash Syed, President of Children’s Hospital at LHSC. “We are honoured to have been a part of this very special time for families. Our team at LHSC is dedicated to providing compassionate, inclusive and equitable care to Londoners and residents from our surrounding communities. As our population in Southwestern Ontario continues to grow, we are excited to build on this milestone, and continue to support patients through our legacy of the best possible care, from the early moments of a child’s life.”
As we enter the second month of the new year, the volume of births occurring at LHSC doesn’t show signs of slowing down. As of early February, LHSC has delivered 613 babies. According to Amanda Williams, these volumes are expected to remain steady throughout 2023.
Quick Facts
- Thursday was the busiest day of the week for deliveries.
- Summer was the busiest season for babies being born. Between June and August 2022, 1,615 babies were born at LHSC.
- LHSC delivered 160 sets of twins and 7 sets of triplets.
- While July 2021 still holds the record for most births in one month (561), August 2022 comes in a close second (559).
