Luzerne County 911 telecommunicator Kaylary Santos will be honored at county council’s Tuesday meeting for assisting a caller in active labor on April 13. She provided emergency medical childbirth instructions in Spanish before medics arrived, officials said.
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Luzerne County 911 telecommunicator Kaylary Santos is set to receive a proclamation during county council’s Tuesday meeting for assisting a caller in active labor on April 13.
The child was born before emergency responders arrived.
It was county 911’s first case of a telecommunicator providing emergency medical childbirth instructions in Spanish, officials said.
Santos, 26, of Wilkes-Barre, said the call came in from a Luzerne borough couple, and she immediately sensed the father was panicking, which was not surprising in the situation.
Growing up in a family in which English was not the first language, Santos also could tell he was struggling a bit to relay the details due to his language barrier. Santos, who is bilingual, asked if he wanted her to speak in Spanish and said he was grateful for that option.
Guided by medical prompts, Santos established that his wife’s water broke, the contractions were coming about a minute apart and the baby’s head had appeared.
When the baby was delivered, Santos braced herself because he said the baby was not breathing. As she readied the next series of instructions, the baby started crying.
Emergency responders arrived at that point, she said.
Santos, who started work as a county 911 telecommunicator in 2023, said a wave of relief overcame her when the baby started crying.
“It’s like a roller coaster of emotions,” Santos said.
The county was unable to identify the Luzerne couple due to confidentiality requirements.
Telecommunicators typically don’t have closure on what happens to callers they assist. Because this was her first childbirth assist and a special case, Santos said her supervisor allowed her to contact the responding ambulance to learn the outcome. She was informed the baby was a boy and that both the baby and mother were transported to a hospital and are doing well.
“I’m just happy they are OK,” Santos said.
Santos said she became a telecommunicator — a worker who both processes emergency calls and dispatches responders — because she wants to help people. The reality is nobody calls 911 because they are having good days, and calls often involve someone who died, she said.
Because she doesn’t expect gratitude for performing her job, Santos said the notification she will be receiving a proclamation is surreal.
“I’m very shocked and thankful,” she said.
County Manager Romilda Crocamo shared the announcement with council members by email.
“Congratulations Kaylary for remaining calm under pressure! We simply do have the very best!” Crocamo wrote.
Reach Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.
