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Media Notice: All media representatives and photographers must be escorted by a member of our Media Relations team while on campus. Please contact Kim Savage [kim-savage@smh.com] to arrange onsite interviews or video/photo shoots of patients, staff and healthcare providers in our facilities. For non-media inquiries, please call (941) 917-7777.

SMH Welcomes the First Baby of 2023

SMH Welcomes the First Baby of 2023

Sunday, January 1, 2023

SARASOTA (Jan. 1, 2023) – Shortly after midnight, Sarasota Memorial Health Care System welcomed its first baby of 2023 at the SMH-Sarasota Campus.

Sarasota mom Julie welcomed New Year baby Kaiden, a healthy baby boy, at 12:29 a.m. today. Kaiden, the first baby delivered this year at SMH, weighs 6 lb. 5 oz. and is 20 inches long. The family will celebrate his birth day with his 4-year-old big sister Aiyanna later in the day.

“It’s great to start the New Year this way,” Julie laughed. “It’s going to be different and fun celebrating his birthday every year.”

Baby Kaiden was delivered by certified nurse midwife Sarah Nicola, assisted by the SMH-Sarasota obstetrical team.

It was a rockin' New Year's Eve at SMH-Sarasota, which delivered 11 babies before nightfall. The last baby of 2022 was delivered at 5 p.m. Kaiden is one of five babies already born at SMH-Sarasota and at least five more women are in labor and expected to deliver later today.

In total, the health system helped to deliver more than 4,500 babies in 2022 at its two campuses in Sarasota and Venice.

The mother-baby nursing team at SMH-Sarasota presented Julie with a special New Year’s baby basket filled with gifts for Kaiden and the family.

About Sarasota Memorial Health Care System

Founded in 1925, Sarasota Memorial Health Care System is a regional medical center offering Southwest Florida’s greatest breadth and depth of care, with more than 1,900 physicians and advanced practice providers and more than a million patient visits a year across its network of care. Sarasota County’s largest employer, the health system includes two full-service hospitals in Sarasota and Venice, a freestanding ER in North Port, and a comprehensive network of outpatient centers, urgent care clinics and physician practices that stretch from Manatee County to North Port. As the region's only public health system and not-for-profit health care provider, SMH serves as a critical safety net for the uninsured in Sarasota County. Visit smh.com for information.