Dr. Karen Russo admits she isn’t overly formal. The down-to-earth approach is part of what defines the first-of-its-kind Hersh Fetal Diagnostic and Treatment Center in New Jersey. “I don’t usually say hello, I just say hi,” she says with a smile. That approachable nature is the same one she brings into the exam room, where she sits with women facing some of the hardest moments of their pregnancies. Her philosophy is simple but powerful. She always has two patients in her care — the mother and the baby — and both matter equally.
Maternal-fetal medicine, the specialty Dr. Russo has dedicated her career to, focuses on managing complicated or high-risk pregnancies. This can mean supporting mothers with underlying conditions such as hypertension, diabetes, or autoimmune disease, or monitoring pregnancies where the fetus has been diagnosed with a structural or genetic concern. “Basically, what we do is we take care of moms who have both medical problems and maternal or fetal problems,” she explains. It is a field where every case requires balancing maternal health with fetal well-being, and where every decision has two patients at the center.
Dr. Russo discovered this passion during her residency at Jefferson in Philadelphia. “I really didn’t expect to love maternal-fetal medicine as much as I did,” she recalls. But the realization that she could care for both mother and baby at once convinced her she had found her path. After completing a fellowship at NYU, she joined Atlantic Health and has since helped shape the region’s maternal-fetal medicine program.
For many years, patients facing fetal diagnoses had to navigate the system on their own, making separate appointments with cardiologists, surgeons, genetic counselors, and other subspecialists scattered across locations. “Historically, the way a patient was given care when they had a baby with an issue was, they were told what the patient needed, and then they were given phone numbers and instructed to arrange care for themselves,” says Dr. Russo. The Hersh Fetal Center’s unique, multidisciplinary approach has changed that model. At the center, subspecialists come to families in one location, with schedules coordinated by a nurse navigator. Parents no longer shoulder the burden of organizing their own care.
The role of maternal-fetal medicine within the Hersh Fetal Center is foundational. These specialists are often the first to identify a concern on ultrasound and to counsel families about what it may mean. From there, Dr. Russo and her colleagues bring in the right subspecialists, whether cardiology, neonatology, neurology, or pediatric surgery, and join together to plan not only care during the pregnancy, but also the delivery and transition to postnatal care. Weekly case reviews ensure that every patient benefits from the team's collective expertise.
Dr. Russo emphasizes that the Hersh Fetal Center doesn’t replace a patient’s relationship with her obstetrician—it strengthens it. “When a patient is diagnosed with an issue, there is an automatic call or referral back to their primary OB to fill them in on the diagnosis and the plan for that patient’s care,” she says. The result is a true triangle of communication where the referring physician, the maternal-fetal medicine team, and the family, are all aligned in their understanding and goals.
Some of the most difficult conversations involve diagnoses that cannot be fixed. Dr. Russo is honest about how painful this can be. “Some of these moms are tremendously sad. They have babies with life-limiting situations or cardiac defects. They need multiple surgeries. And it is rough on these families.” This is where the Hersh Fetal Center’s support team becomes essential. Social workers, genetic counselors, and nurse navigators provide time, tools, and emotional support that physicians alone cannot always give.
For Dr. Russo, the most rewarding days are the ones where she can deliver hopeful news that a pregnancy can be managed within the center, that a mother won’t need to travel long distances, and that her baby can be delivered safely with her trusted provider.
Her work is both clinical and deeply human. For Dr. Russo, maternal-fetal medicine is about standing with families in uncertainty, caring for both mother and baby, and ensuring no one has to walk the journey alone. That is what the Hersh Fetal Center’s unique care model makes possible.