Continuing Care: Going the Extra Mile

It was late in the afternoon, already past 5. Rush hour on Lancaster Avenue was in full swing. The last time Kiara* walked through our doors, she got good news: not pregnant. This time, she was more concerned. Her family would not be happy if she told them she was having a baby, and her boyfriend–he’d expect her to have an abortion, no question.

Kiara had called the office last week, overwhelmed and unsure of how she was going to be able to come in for an appointment. She was working full-time and her schedule wouldn’t allow her to take off during AlphaCare’s business hours. Our nurses made an exception for her and stayed late to perform a pregnancy test. Sure enough, the test showed that Kiara was pregnant. Her boyfriend came to the appointment with her and was out in our waiting room when Kiara found out. They moved on to the ultrasound and, when Kiara was ready, invited her boyfriend to join her. It was clear that Kiara’s boyfriend was unmoved by what he saw on the screen, but that was not the case for Kiara.

She asked to keep the pictures from her ultrasound and even took some information about her developing baby and strategies for dealing with nausea and vomiting. She was undecided about the future of her baby when she left our office, but when Sue, our nurse, called to give her the full ultrasound report, Kiara’s voice sounded brighter, and she shared that her nausea had improved. She even agreed to have Sue call back and check in again later; she welcomed the support of a woman, something she didn’t have much of in her life.

During their last phone call, Kiara shared that she had scheduled an appointment with an OB/GYN in her area and had been surprised by unexpected support from some people in her life. While she still feels a bit undecided, our staff was encouraged that she would likely choose life and Kiara expressed much gratitude for the hope and help she found at AlphaCare.

If you’d like to help us reach more women like Kiara, give here.

*Names and identifying details have been changed for the privacy of our clients and their families.