Los Angeles firefighters are fighting to raise awareness about the rare but life-threatening complications of childbirth that led to the death of his wife, local nursing influencer Haley Marie Okra.
Matthew Okra said he hopes that his efforts will help educate him on what to expect and encourage them to discuss potential complications (amniotic fluid embolism) with health care providers. But aside from raising public awareness, he said he hopes Haley’s story will encourage further medical research.
“My hope is to find a way to understand this before it’s a fatal complication of running around trying to save someone else’s life,” he said.
By posting a video about Haley’s popular RN New Grads Instagram account in September 2024, Oclas announced her pregnancy after nearly two years of in vitro fertilization treatment.
The announcement states, “We [had] I’ve experienced a lot, [Hailey] “It was really special for us to be successful in the end.”
The two met almost 13 years ago and set their sights on careers they knew would help their community. She became an emergency room nurse. He is a firefighter at the Los Angeles Fire Department.
Okula describes his wife, known on Instagram and Tiktok as “Nurse Haley,” as an individual and entrepreneur who drove his vision to support his graduates and help them find work.
Now, Okra is leaning towards the support of its online community and his family and colleagues after Haley passed away from amniotic fluid embolism on March 29th.
Amniotic fluid embolism is a very rare but life-threatening complication and is bewildered by the lack of previous risk factors that make providers unsafe and unpreventable.
Three days before her death, Haley was 41 weeks pregnant and was scheduled to be led at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley. Okula said they wanted to try a natural birth as they were talking about getting IVF treatment again. The couple ultimately wanted to raise their family to four children.
During delivery, the health care provider said Haley must have a Caesarean section. The procedure was successful and a boy’s crew was born.
“I can hear the baby crying [the doctors] He lifts him up, we look at him and Haley says something about how big he is,” Okula said.
At the time, everything seemed normal. Okula tells him that he cuts the crew’s cord and the doctor lets him know that Haley is doing well and can wait for her in the next room with the baby.
His final conversation with Haley was to tell her how beautiful the crew was and that he would see her in the next room.
“She shed a few tears on her face, so I wiped it off,” he said.
Just a few minutes later, the doctor entered the room and told Okula that Haley’s heart had stopped. Okula rushed back to the delivery room in shock and found out, “Fifteen people would do all these different interventions and get her back.”
Haley was rushed to the intensive care unit, but hospital staff quickly made devastating news. She died of amniotic fluid embolism.
The amniotic fluid contained within the amniotic sac supports the developing fetus, protecting and protecting the cushion.
Researchers assume that this occurs when pregnant women have a severe allergic reaction to other substances such as amniotic fluid or fetal cells entering the mother’s bloodstream.
Amniotic fluid embolism can cause heart and lung deficiencies, and a lack of oxygenated blood causes several complications, according to a clinic in Cleveland.
Symptoms include shortness of breath, a sudden drop in blood pressure, and bleeding problems that often lead to cardiac arrest and large bleeding.
Complications can be sudden and can affect both the mother and baby before, during or immediately after work and childbirth, experts say.
The basis of amniotic fluid embolism is said to be extremely difficult to study due to its rarity and fatal speed. However, it is estimated that it will affect one in 40,000 births, with mortality rates ranging from 20% to 60%.
