Danielle Lozano, a labor and delivery nurse, checks on newborn Amira Hernandez in the postpartum area of the University Health Women’s & Children’s Hospital on March 19, 2026.
Katina Zentz/San Antonio Express-News
Growing up in the San Antonio area, Danielle Lozano and Raquel Rosales didn’t know each other, but they shared the same dream: To find a career that allowed them to help people in need.
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Both studied hard and achieved degrees in nursing, which led them to become labor and delivery nurses.
Today, they both work at University Health Women and Children’s Hospital, but they are serving in two very different ways: Lozano works in the third-floor maternity ward, while Rosales is a member of the hospital’s medical transport team, which puts her in helicopters, jets and ambulances.
There are 4.7 million nurses in the United States, according to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing. About 200,000 of those nurses specialize in labor and delivery, gynecology, neonatology or obstetrics, according to a 2024 Bureau of Health Workforce report.
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Whether helping an expectant mother deliver her child in a maternity room or monitoring vital signs of a mother in distress high in the sky, Lozano and Rosales have the same mission: To help mothers deliver their babies safely.
“One of my favorite things to do is see pride in a mom’s face after that baby is put on her chest,” Lozano said. “There’s that automatic connection you see that not a lot of people get to be a part of. It’s such a privilege.”
‘Profound connection’
When she clocks in each workday at 6:45 a.m., Lozano gets a report on what’s happened overnight and gets to work helping mothers through the delivery process and assisting doctors during delivery.
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Lozano said not a day goes by when she doesn’t grasp what an amazing thing moms are doing. She has two children of her own, and delivered her youngest child in the ward where she works.
Danielle Lozano talks with patient Diana Berrospe at University Health Women’s & Children’s Hospital on March 19.
Katina Zentz/San Antonio Express-News
Danielle Lozano checks on newborn Amira Hernandez while talking with parents Diana Berrospe, left, and Tanner Hernandez.
Katina Zentz/San Antonio Express-News
Lozano grew up in Boerne and graduated from Champion High School. She worked as a patient care assistant before studying to become a registered nurse at the Baptist School of Health. She received a bachelor’s degree in nursing at Texas Tech University and is studying for a master’s degree in certified nursing midwifery.
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“The first delivery I got to witness, there was this profound connection to helping somebody,” Lozano said. “Honestly, it’s one of the most vulnerable times in someone’s life.”
She’s also present when things may not go the way families hoped. That’s when they most need calm with compassionate care.
“You are part of their life unfortunately on sometimes not so good days,” Lozano said. “But even then, knowing that we’re trusted with their care is a wonderful feeling.”
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‘A little piece of my heart’
When she stepped into an Apollo helicopter three years ago for her first flight as a maternal transport nurse, Rosales said she was both excited and nervous.
Raquel Rosales, a maternal transport specialist, poses for a portrait on the south helipad at University Hospital on March 19, 2026.
Katina Zentz/San Antonio Express-News
The flight was to pick up a high-risk patient from Fort Duncan Medical Regional Center in Eagle Pass. As the spinning rotor blades lifted the chopper from the University Health helipad, the team went into “sterile pit” mode, when everyone is silent on takeoff for the pilot’s safety. Her training kicked in and she scanned the outside space for plastic bags or debris that could obstruct the pilot’s vision. Then she settled in the cabin that fits a stretcher, medical equipment, fetal monitor and medications.
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As the copter reached flying altitude, she looked around the cabin and felt as if she’d sped to the top of a roller coaster. The reflection of the world below slid across the visor of her flight helmet.
Each week, Rosales works three 12-hour days as a member of the University Health SkyCare Maternal Transport Team that serves San Antonio and South Texas. Her team responds to emergencies by helicopter, fixed wing small jet or ambulance ground transport.
Born and raised in San Antonio, Rosales has a bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of Texas in San Antonio, a bachelor’s degree in science from the UT Health Science Center and a master’s degree in science from the University of North Texas.
Rosales said during the past two years, she’s gone out on more than 20 transport missions.
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“I love being in the field,” Rosales said. “Every day we see new things, so it’s never a dull moment.”
Rosales recalled one patient who didn’t think she should fly on the helicopter because she didn’t feel sick at the time. Eventually, she relented and agreed to be flown to the hospital.
A few days later, she saw the patient in the triage unit where she was scheduled for an ultrasound. Rosales checked in regularly during the patient’s stay, to make sure she was making good progress.
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“I feel that they hold a little piece of my heart,” Rosales said. “They are the reason that I do this.”
Tanner Hernandez touches the head of his newborn daughter Amira at University Health Women’s & Children’s Hospital on March 19.
Katina Zentz/San Antonio Express-News