The Childress Institute for Pediatric Trauma has named Lisa La Russo as the recipient of The Childress Institute for Pediatric Trauma Scholarship on September 14. La Russo has been a paramedic for American Medical Response in Riverside County, California for 28 years.

La Russo is also the founder of a non-profit organization dedicated to preventing pediatric drowning incidents and was instrumental in achieving needle cricothyroidotomy as a skill for paramedics in Riverside County.

The scholarship will be presented October 17 at the NAEMT general membership meeting and on October 18 during the opening ceremony of the EMS World Expo.

La Russo is greatly admired and respected by both pre-hospital care colleagues and emergency department physicians and nurses. She has been frequently noted for her extraordinary service.

“Ms. La Russo is a passionate paramedic, dedicated to providing excellent care to families,” says Michael Osur, MBA, assistant director, chief health strategist of Riverside University Health System-Public Health.

In efforts to reduce the rising number of preventable drowning and near-drowning incidents among children, La Russo established a non-profit organization, Splash Medics, composed of first responders who devote their time to water safety education for children and their families.

“Ms. La Russo is dedicated to preventing injuries to children and her efforts throughout her career embody the mission of the Childress Institute for Pediatric Trauma—to discover and share the best ways to prevent and treat severe injuries in children,” Osur said.