Dallas mother reunites with nurse who saved her life during traumatic childbirth
For eight years, Chaltu Emana searched for the nurse who saved her and her baby's lives during a traumatic delivery at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas. She only remembered the nurse's face, not her name.
Emana's labor, at 39 weeks, quickly turned dangerous when her uterus ruptured. Amid the chaos, one nurse stayed by her side, alerting doctors to the emergency and helping make sure both mom and child survived.
"I thought I was going to die, and I thought the baby was going to die too," Emana said.
Emergency surgery saved mom and baby
Minutes later, an emergency C-section saved them both. But Emana never learned the nurse's name and spent years asking hospital staff for help.
"I kept saying her name was like Gina or something, and they kept saying we don't know that person," she said.
Photo helped unlock long search
The search finally broke through when Emana spotted an old photo in the background of her baby's picture. Recognizing the nurse's face, she reached out — just as she had started working as a nurse herself at the same hospital.
This summer, Emana was finally reunited with Jenna Perry, the nurse who had stayed with her during the emergency.
"I saw her face; I was like that is her. I couldn't stop crying," Perry said. "That day and that story has stuck with me for the last eight years. It was honestly one of the most incredible moments I have had in my career," Perry said.
Baby now thriving eight years later
The baby Emana once feared losing, Aaron, is now 8 years old — healthy, active, and full of life.
"As a nurse, you really need to know you're doing things for a patient that could be simple, but life-changing," Perry said. "Seeing her and saying thank you is all I wanted, and it finally happened."
Reunion brought long-awaited closure
For Emana, the reunion offered closure and gratitude after nearly a decade.
"In that moment, I could finally say the words I've held onto for eight years: 'Thank you!'" she said.
Nicole Nielsen joined the CBS 11 news team in June 2020. Born and raised in Keller, Nicole is a North Texas native who is thrilled to work for the station she grew up watching.
