Andrea Russin was just 26 weeks pregnant with twins, when she unexpectedly gave birth at home to two premature infant boys that weighed just over 1 pound each who were not breathing on their own.

Andrea and her husband, Adam, called 911. Emergency medical technicians revived the babies and then rushed mother and newborns to Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital, a member of the Westchester Medical Center Health Network (WMCHealth). The hospital has the only Level IV Regional Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) in the Hudson Valley.

Named Jacob and Samuel, the babies’ condition was dire. They were placed on ventilators, while the NICU staff carefully attended to their needs.

Tragically, Jacob passed away one day after his arrival. Samuel continued to fight, and Andrea, now on leave from her job, stayed by his side. In the months that followed, she and Adam became deeply familiar — and impressed — with the NICU’s caring staff.

 “They treated us like we were their family. That’s not something that can be faked or manufactured. The nurses became such a part of our family, and our family story, that we will be forever grateful,” Adam says.

The staff grew just as fond of Andrea and Adam. “They are smart, capable people,” says Edmund F. La Gamma, MD, Chief of the Division of Newborn Medicine at Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital, noting that the couple pored over a textbook, Preemies: The Essential Guide for Parents of Premature Babies, which a faculty member gave them.

Sue Malfa, RN, nurse manager of the NICU, remembers the Russins’ expressiveness and strong connection to their son. “They would come in and cry but, at Samuel’s bedside, they would smile at his beautiful face or even laugh while talking to him,” she remembers.

Sadly, about three and a half months after his arrival at Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital, Samuel succumbed to his critical condition. “It was very quiet in the room,” Malfa recalls. “It involved everyone including the nurses and staff.”

The NICU staff’s tireless efforts to save Jacob and Samuel made a profound and lasting impression on the Russins. “The easy thing to do would be to focus on our sons dying. But instead, we focus on the love and the care that they received while they were here for their short lives, and that’s what means so much to us,” Adam says.

“Adam uses the word superheroes to describe the nursing staff and the first word that comes to my mind is angels,” says Andrea. “Because how could a stranger that doesn’t even know you, show such genuine compassion? It really makes the difference in what the experience is like when you’re watching someone else take care of your baby.”

With donations from family, friends, and community members, the couple established The Russin Family Fund, and uses its resources to support Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital’s NICU. They gifted more than 300 copies of Preemies, the textbook that they relied on during their ordeal, to other NICU parents.

The Russins generosity is helping to expand the care provided by the children’s hospital, which currently treats more than 30,000 critically ill infants and children each year from across the Hudson Valley and beyond.

The hospital’s neonatal group also provides on-site neonatologists to eight other local hospitals, to assist babies from the moment of birth. In Dr. La Gamma’s experience, survival outcomes at Maria Fareri Children Hospital’s NICU rival those of any facility worldwide.

“Beyond high-quality medical services, we also value high-quality communication and interaction,” Dr. La Gamma says. “We understand the heavy toll these situations take on families, and we are committed to supporting them as well.”

“I am forever grateful,” says Andrea. “I was so thankful and blessed that I ended up here sort of by accident in an emergency situation, in such an incredible hospital.” Adds Adam: “If you have to be in a children’s hospital, or your family has to be in a children’s hospital, there is no better place on the planet than Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital.”

More inspirational stories from Maria Fareri Childrens Hospital:

Zechia Mickler has a smile that can light up a room, but severe leg pain sidelined the dancing and music-loving 11-year-old. Her parents remembered the advanced care she received as a toddler at Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital in Valhalla, NY, a member of the Westchester Medical Center Health Network (WMCHealth). At age 1, doctors surgically repaired a life-threatening diaphragmatic hernia that moved her lower abdominal organs into her chest. A decade later, her parents knew WMCHealth could help, again.

They left their Beacon, NY home to drive to the closest emergency room — Maria Fareri Children’s Healthcare Services at MidHudson Regional Hospital in Poughkeepsie, NY. Zechia was admitted, then evaluated by a pediatric orthopedist who diagnosed her with slipped capital femoral epiphysisa (SCFE). The painful hip disorder occurs when the ball at the head of the femur slips off. Emergency surgery was recommended and Zechia transferred seamlessly to Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital. A pediatric orthopedic surgeon used screws to fix the SCFE on the problematic hip and did the same, as a preventative measure, to the other hip.

Thanks to the continuity of care at WMCHealth, Zechia left the hospital pain-free, sporting her megawatt smile and ready to dance, again.

“Maria Fareri Children’s Healthcare Services at MidHudson Regional Hospital is a big deal! It’s great to know that you don’t have to go far if your child has an emergency and that WMCHealth is always there to help. They treat all the kids like their own. Please donate to help keep this service in the community for future generations,’’ said Zechia’s mother Donnalee Mickler.

More inspirational stories from Maria Fareri Childrens Hospital:

Seven year-old Camryn Kellam was cheered by her family and her care team from Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital during a recent ceremony in which she was presented with an official sash designating her as a hospital ambassador for the Go the Distance Virtual Walk. 

Camryn was born with Sickle Cell Disease and underwent a successful stem cell transplant at Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital in March 2020. Camryn’s oldest sister, Skylar, 21, was her life-changing donor.  The transplant was successful and now Camryn remains free of the significant symptoms and complications associated with the disease.

Neurosurgical care at Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital also is on the horizon for Camryn as physicians also diagnosed Camryn with Moyamoya Disease, a rare and progressive condition of tortuous (twisted) blood vessels at the base of Camryn’s brain. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, Moyamoya Disease can lead to aneurysms, strokes and other serious neurological complications. 

Despite these challenges, Camryn is doing well and her spirits are high, which is why Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital, a member of the Westchester Medical Center Health Network (WMCHealth), chose Camryn to represent the thousands of acutely ill and injured children cared for by Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital each year.

Go the Distance is an annual walk and family day fundraiser for Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital. This is the 17^th edition of the event that for the safety of participants will be conducted virtually. Families and organizations eager to participate are encouraged to walk a one-mile course of their choosing between now and November 7. 

Those who wish to create a team and support the advanced care mission of Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital should call 914.493.2575 or visit Give.WMCHealth.org/GTD21 for team-building and fundraising instructions.

Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital is a Leading Research Center

Camryn’s stem cell transplant was conducted as part of a Sickle Cell Disease research trial led by Mitchell Cairo, MD, Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital’s Chief of Pediatric Hematology, Oncology and Stem Cell Transplantation. Study results reported in a peer-reviewed journal showed 100% subject survival and the elimination of symptoms and complications associated with Sickle Cell Disease.  That research trial is one of several studies on Sickle Cell Disease, pediatric blood disorders and cancers for which Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital serves as the lead research site. 

The Childhood and Adolescent Cancer and Blood Diseases Center at Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital, is an internationally-recognized, multidisciplinary diagnostic treatment and research center that extends comprehensive care while leading breakthrough research in cancer and blood diseases. Referring physicians or families seeking a consultation with one of the center’s cancer or blood disorder specialists should call 914.493.7997.

More inspirational stories from Maria Fareri Childrens Hospital: