Two young women who were premature triplets at the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital (RBWH) have returned to work as nurses, caring for a new generation of sick newborns.
Rebecca Adam and Brenna Warren work at the hospital's neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) alongside Gillian Lack, one of the people who nursed them as babies in the 1990s – and a woman who now describes herself as their "work mother".
"I was most definitely there to wipe their bottoms when they were little," Gillian said, laughing.
"It's extraordinary. Just to see them come back and blossom into these … amazing clinicians.
"They're both fabulous. I work with the most extraordinary people. I just love it. It's exhausting, but we do great things."
In 1991, Rebecca was born more than seven weeks early, weighing just 1,820 grams.
She and her triplet brothers Dillon and Fletcher, conceived through in vitro fertilisation (IVF), were cared for in the RBWH before being discharged home to the Gold Coast. They have an older brother, Blake.
On days her mother Vivienne could not visit them in hospital, she would get a courier to transport her breastmilk from the Gold Coast to the nursery to feed her babies.
Vivienne's stories about the triplets' time in the hospital as premature babies inspired Rebecca to pursue a career in neonatal nursing.
"When I found out that I was a premmie and there was a place in the hospital that nurses could look after babies, I just knew that I wanted to do that," she said.
"Thinking about my mum having babies in the nursery, and having a connection to that, I feel like that's quite special. I treat families as I would hope my family was treated back in the day."
Brenna is also an IVF triplet. She weighed 1,600g when she was born about six weeks early in 1994 alongside her sister Morgan and brother Cale.
"I always remember looking back at photos of when we were in hospital," Brenna said.
"I loved babies, and I just knew that's what I wanted to do.
"It's just where your passion aligns. You just follow it."
Apart from working in the RBWH Grantley Stable Neonatal Unit, which admitted 1,649 babies last year, Rebecca and Brenna also take to the skies as neonatal retrieval nurses.
They work on call for NeoRESQ, a joint service between the Mater Mothers' Hospital and RBWH, which transfers sick babies born in regional hospitals in northern NSW and throughout Queensland to more specialised care in larger units in the sunshine state's south-east.
The RBWH-based NeoRESQ team retrieved 643 tiny patients in 2022.
Using their skills on the road or in helicopters and small, fixed-wing aircraft was a perfect fit for Brenna, who was in the air cadets growing up and has family members who have served in the Australian Defence Force.
"I've always grown up around planes and helicopters," Brenna said.
"We always travel with a doctor. Some of them do get a bit of motion sickness."
Working as part of NeoRESQ is a testament to a neonatal nurse's skills.
"You have to be well educated and highly skilled and competent at your job on the ward before they will let you do retrievals because it's just you and a doctor," Rebecca said.
Gillian, who began working as a neonatal nurse in 1987, said much had changed in the way premature babies were cared for.
More extremely premature babies are surviving now.
'I'm very proud to watch them'
More than 27,000 premature babies — those born before 37 weeks gestation — are delivered in Australia annually. That's about one in 10 newborns.
"We are constantly updating and learning what we can do to make it better for the family," Gillian said.
Gillian said even after 36 years as a neonatal nurse, she still enjoys visits from some of the people she has nursed as sick and premature babies.
"It's really lovely to see them … and thinking, 'They were so sick. But look at them now.' It makes you realise how important our job is.
"I remember one young man who had had a lot of challenges in the nursery who came back to visit with his mother when he was 17.
"His mum was so dedicated to him. She was so proud of all of his achievements, as was he. He became a masseuse. It was great to see them."
The feeling is magnified on days when Rebecca or Brenna is rostered on the ward with her.
"I'm very proud to watch them," Gillian said.
