Two Austrian women who were accidentally exchanged shortly after birth have finally met each other 35 years later, bringing closure to a case that remained unresolved for decades.
Doris Grünwald and Jessica Baumgartner were born prematurely in October 1990 at the LKH-Uniklinikum hospital in Graz, in southern Austria. In a mix-up soon after delivery, the newborns were mistakenly handed to the wrong parents and grew up in separate families unaware of the switch.
The truth began to unfold in 2012 when Doris, then an adult, donated blood and realised that her blood type did not match that of her mother, Evelin. This prompted further investigations that confirmed she was not biologically related to her parents, Evelin and Josef.
Austrian broadcaster ORF brought the case to light in 2016, but at the time, the other family could not be located. Jessica, who had been raised by Herbert and Monika Derler in a nearby area, later discovered the same discrepancy during a pregnancy check-up when doctors informed her of the long-standing switched-at-birth case.
Jessica eventually reached out to Doris through Facebook, and the two arranged to meet. Their first encounter was emotional and immediate. “We got along right away,” Doris said. “It was an indescribably good feeling.”
The two families have now also met, in a gathering documented by ORF’s Thema TV programme.
Monika Derler described her reaction to the revelation as overwhelming. “But my first thought was Jessica will always be our child. And when I saw Doris, I thought she is such a sweetheart,” she said.
Evelin Grünwald expressed relief at finally getting answers after years of uncertainty. “For me, my family has just got bigger and I finally have certainty,” she said.
Her husband added, “It was a relief.”
Gebhard Falzberger, the operations manager at the hospital where the error occurred, issued an apology to both families through ORF. “We deeply regret that this mistake was made at the time,” he said.
In 2016, the Grünwalds sought legal advice and adopted Doris to secure her inheritance rights. They were also awarded compensation from the hospital. The Derler family is now pursuing a similar process of adoption and compensation.
Jessica acknowledged that while it was a relief to have clarity, the situation carried complex emotions. “It's emotionally huge,” she said, “with beautiful sides to it but also a lot of pain