CAMP LEJEUNE, North Carolina  –   NMCCL's Labor and Delivery Department RN, Robin Russelle was recently recognized as a Daisy Award recipient. The Daisy Award is a national recognition program medical facilities use to acknowledge nursing staff who exhibit exceptional care to their patients.

The nomination below was submitted by CDR Caleb Podraza, Director of Neonatology.

"Robin Russelle was nominated for her clinical excellence and outstanding compassionate care to Baby M and his family. Baby M was diagnosed prenatally with Trisomy 18 and a variety of associated defects that unfortunately were not compatible with life.

The parents made the very difficult decision to continue the pregnancy and then provide comfort palliative care for Baby M after birth. Robin was the nurse assigned to care for this family during the labor and delivery and she gave them an exceptional experience given the circumstances.

Caring for a dying infant is one of the hardest things we do in the medical field and Robin took on this responsibility with dignity. Robin assumed the palliative care role for Baby M during his few short hours of life. Up until he took his last breaths. The difficulty in caring for a term new born who is dying cannot possibly be stated in words and yet Robin did so with grace and compassion that was truly above and beyond. She went to great lengths to ensure that Baby M and his family had everything, anticipated their needs and gave them the empathy and love they desperately needed in this impossible time.

Robin even went behind the scenes, making multiple phone calls after his death to arrange for a respectful and appropriate viewing, mourning and transfer to the morgue and funeral home. The family expressed to me on multiple occasions how truly grateful and blessed they were for Robin, for everything she did to ensure their experience was peaceful, and how blessed they were to have Nurse Robin. Her actions in this case are the epitome of the Daisy Award and she deserves to be recognized for her clinical excellence and outstanding, compassionate care."

Congratulations to Robin Russelle. NMCCL is fortunate to have amazing staff members on our team. We appreciate the compassion Robin showed this family during their stay.