A baby born at just 22 weeks has been given a heartwarming send-off by the hospital which looked after her.
Zahraliz Francis Angueira was born was just 22 weeks gestation, and left after a four-month stay at Saint Francis Hospital in Connecticut, USA.
The little girl weighed just 12.4 ounces when she was born on February 22 and arrived home around three days after her original due date weighing seven pounds and five ounces.
To mark her departure, the hospital staff created a special send-off complete with live piano music and balloons as they lined up to clap both mother and baby on their way out.
Days before her birth, Zahraliz’s mother, Neyshaliz Angueira, was admitted to the hospital on February 18 with symptoms of preterm labour.
Ms Anguiera was suffering from pneumonia when she gave birth and there were fears both she and the baby would suffer complications.
According to the hospital, the new mother said that she was willing to share her story to give other families hope.
She told News 8: “I just want to share with everyone how caring the people I met at Saint Francis were.”
She added: “I am so grateful for the kindness and support that was given to us.”
Speaking to NBC Connecticut, she said she has a special similarity with her daughter in that she was also born prematurely.
She said: “When she gets older, you know, this is a connection. This is a story that we both are going to have that we could share.”
Saint Francis Hospital’s Dr Jose Arias-Camison said the whole send-off was very emotional for everyone involved.
Dr Arias-Camison said: “It was very emotional for everybody involved. I love the baby. You know, I love Zahraliz.
“We try not to get emotional about our patients, but sometimes, you know, we do become emotional.
“It was a good day yesterday for our NICU.”
