Mater Hospital Springfield has welcomed its first set of little triplets – with brothers Joseph, Simon and Pita arriving at the new Special Care Nursery.
The triplets were born eight weeks early at Mater Mothers’ Hospital in South Brisbane, where they received around-the-clock care before being transferred closer to home at Springfield four days later.
Mum Salote said the trio had been a big surprise.
“I didn’t find out I was having triplets until about four or five months,” said Ms Cokiverata.
“It was quite a shock – but I’m so happy. And I’m still trying to work out who’s who!”
While the newborns are being cared for at Springfield, Ms Cokiverata is continuing to juggle day-to-day life with her two other children, daughter Dasha, 6, and son Ezra, 3, before bringing her three new boys home.
“I’m just trying to organise everything I can,” said Ms Cokiverata.
“They are getting stronger every day. I got to give them a bath yesterday – it made me so happy.”
The trio’s birth weight varied in size with eldest, Joseph, a tiny 1920 grams, Simon tipping the scales at 2484 grams, and little brother, Pita, not far behind at 2409 grams.
Springfield’s Neonatal Critical Care Nurse Unit Manager Liji Pullookaran said having the triplets in her care has been very exciting for the team.
“They are gorgeous boys and it has been amazing having them in our new nursery,” said Ms Pullookaran.
“The nurses have a very precise schedule for feeding and care of the three boys and it is great to see them doing so well.”
Ms Pullookaran has been a neonatal nurse for 18 years and was the project lead for clinical planning and operational readiness at Mater Hospital Springfield.
There are 16 individual Neonatal Critical Care units, providing added privacy for families.
“It was so rewarding being able to use my own experiences and knowledge to build a facility that I am so proud to work in every day,” said Ms Pullookaran.
“I love what I do – being able to provide care to our most vulnerable babies and their families closer to their home is very rewarding.”
160 babies have been born at the new Mater Hospital Springfield since opening in May.
