First baby born at Manchester hospital on NHS' 75th birthday

This is the the first baby born at a Manchester hospital on the 75th anniversary of the NHS.

Little Alma Engstrom came into the world at 1.45am on Wednesday (July 5) at Wythenshawe Hospital. She was the first baby born at any hospital managed by the Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust.

It comes as July 5 marks a remarkable 75 years of the NHS, after it was founded in 1948. It was the first free universal health system to be available to all - and now treats over one million people each and every day in England.

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Alma was born at Wythenshawe Hospital to beaming parents Karla Engstrom and Alex Macdonald. Pictures and videos shared exclusively with the Manchester Evening News show the moment Karla cradles her newborn in her hospital bed.

Amanda Pritchard, chief executive of the NHS in England, said that the three-quarters of a century since the institution's creation was an opportunity to 'reflect' on the hard work of staff while looking forward to the future of the NHS.

She acknowledged the 'enormous challenges' faced by the health service's current 1.4 million workers, including the record demand for services and the backlog of care.

“The history of the NHS is one of change and innovation, so while striving to meet the needs of today’s patients, we are also making decisions to ensure we adapt to meet the needs of the next generation," she said.

“While many things have changed over the last 75 years, the skill and compassion of NHS staff who care for our patients and their families has always remained constant. They face enormous challenges: recovering services, addressing Covid backlogs that inevitably built up over