After months in neonatal care, Isaac Bako has finally gone home to his parents and siblings following what his family called an “emotional rollercoaster”
Credit: nhsuhcw
NEED TO KNOW
- Isaac Bako was born at just 22 weeks and three days, weighing only 1.2 pounds
- After spending months in specialist neonatal care, the U.K. infant was able to go home with his family
- His parents praised the hospital staff who cared for him, calling his survival “a miracle”
When Isaac Bako was born at just 22 weeks and three days, weighing only 555 grams — about 1.2 pounds — his parents faced an uncertain road ahead.
Now, months later, the infant has reached a major milestone: he’s home with his family after becoming the youngest surviving baby ever born at University Hospital Coventry in the United Kingdom, according to University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust.
Isaac, who was born extremely prematurely in February, spent the first months of his life in the hospital’s Neonatal and Special Care Baby Units, where specialist teams cared for him as he steadily gained strength.
About seven in 10 babies born at 22 weeks do not survive labor or the immediate postnatal period, according to the NHS. Similarly, a 2024 study published by the National Library of Medicine found that just 24.9% of infants born at 22 weeks live long enough to be discharged from the hospital after birth.
Against those odds, Isaac steadily gained strength over the months that followed, growing from 1.2 pounds at birth to nearly 6 pounds. After spending the first months of his life in the hospital, he was finally able to go home with his parents, Vimbay and Tatenda, where his two siblings were waiting to welcome him, according to the NHS.
“It was one of the scariest moments of my life and it has been an emotional rollercoaster,” Vimbay said in a statement shared by the NHS. “We’ve celebrated every gram he has gained!”
“There have been moments of fear and moments of exhaustion, but there have also been moments of hope, and my faith has carried me through this,” she continued.
Vimbay also credited the hospital’s neonatal staff with helping Isaac reach the milestone.
“The nursing team and Neonatal staff have been amazing. Isaac wouldn’t have got to where he is now without them,” she said.
She recalled that Isaac’s time in intensive care was especially difficult, saying, “When he was in Intensive Care, that was the hardest time, and the nurses there have such a big job caring for the tiniest children.”
The milestone was also celebrated by the hospital staff who spent months caring for Isaac.
“Isaac’s journey is a powerful example of the strength shown by babies, families and staff every day in our Neonatal services,” Tracey Brigstock, chief nursing officer at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, said in the release.
“We are incredibly proud of the care, compassion and expertise shown by our teams. It is wonderful to know Isaac is now home with his family, and we wish them every happiness for the future,” she added.
The NHS also shared a YouTube video documenting Isaac’s journey, in which his father, Tatenda, reflected on finally bringing his son home.
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“It’s a miracle to be fair that he’s here with us,” he said. “We didn’t really think that this day would come and we wouldn’t have done it without you both and the team as well.”
“Thank you so much,” he added.
Looking back on the family’s months-long journey, Tatenda said they never lost hope that Isaac would one day leave the hospital.
“From day one, when he was born, we always knew he was going to come out of here, but we didn’t know how. We didn’t know who. But it’s all you guys that have made it possible, so thank you so much,” he said.
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