“Quite honestly, it was the luckiest day of our lives.”
For Jersey City residents Dan Kirschner, 31, and his wife Stephanie, 32, there was never a question about where they’d have their first baby. Their choice was the Lord Abbett Maternity Wing at Jersey City Medical Center (JCMC).
What they couldn’t have expected was that a routine checkup late in the pregnancy would end up with the couple at the maternity wing, having the baby delivered by emergency cesarean section.
“The medical professionals at Jersey City Medical Center saved our baby’s life,” Dan says. “We can never thank them enough.”
A Low Heart Rate
Dan, a CIS Associate in Client Lifecycle Solutions, has worked at Lord Abbett, an investment management company, for eight years and had been part of its community involvement team. Along with the rest of the company, he’d been hearing regular reports about the state-of-the-art Lord Abbett Maternity Wing that opened in 2020, made possible in part by a $1 million donation from Lord Abbett.
The couple moved from Hoboken to Jersey City in early 2020. Knowing that they wanted to start a family, Stephanie became a patient at JCMC’s Women’s Health at Grove Street, which offers a full spectrum of maternal health care.
“We knew I’d be giving birth on the Lord Abbett Maternity Wing, and I wanted streamlined care, with no barriers or red tape,” Stephanie explains. “I’m so glad we did. Throughout the pregnancy, even though it was not an easy one, I had a wonderful experience—it’s a lovely, bright, airy space, and people are so friendly and happy to be there. It was a night-and-day contrast with any other gynecological experience I’d ever had.”
Stephanie was three days past her due date of February 19 when she went for a checkup at Women’s Health at Grove Street. The certified nurse midwife who examined her observed that the baby’s heart rate was unusually low. She advised them to go the Emergency Department at JCMC for further evaluation.
From there, Stephanie was admitted to the Lord Abbett Maternity Wing. She was put on oxygen and helped with different positions to assist the baby’s heart rate.
A Team in Action
Because of COVID-19 protocols in place at the time, Dan couldn’t go with Stephanie into the operating room where the cesarean section would be performed. Though his adrenaline was high, he found himself firmly boxed into a separate room by two petite but determined Labor & Delivery nurses. “We promise we’ll keep you informed every minute,” they said.
In the operating room, a nurse held a panicking Stephanie’s hand and said, “Just look at me.” The anesthesia soon took effect, and within minutes, baby Evan was born and doing fine.
Later, the couple learned that a detaching placenta had been the cause of the baby’s low heart rate. “The medical professionals were so in tune about what’s typical and healthy, they knew right away that something was abnormal. We just could not be more grateful to them,” says Stephanie.
Evan was born on February 2, 2022. “His birthday was 2/2/22. Some of my colleagues have informed me that two is a lucky number in the Chinese culture, and that his birth date is one of the luckiest dates on the calendar,” Dan says.
“Quite honestly, it was the luckiest day of our lives.”
JCMC and Lord Abbett: A Robust Partnership
Lord Abbett & Co., one of the oldest money management firms in the U.S., is committed to nurturing future generations in Jersey City, where it is headquartered. Jersey City Medical Center (JCMC) is an anchor institution on a mission to keep people in its community healthy.
Perhaps it’s not surprising, then, that the two organizations have formed a robust and mutually beneficial relationship as they pursue their shared vision.
In 2019, Lord Abbett gave a $1 million donation that, in part, allowed the creation of the Lord Abbett Maternity Wing, a 17,500-square-foot space offering expert care, spacious private rooms and many amenities. The firm has also recently made a generous donation to support mental health services in the community.
Building on the two organizations’ shared goals of community health and wellness, JCMC has become a valuable resource for Lord Abbett employees. “We’ve provided fact-based information and medically sound advice on topics like vaccines and back-to-work protocols for COVID-19,” says Nicole Kagan, Vice President of the Jersey City Medical Center Foundation. “We’ve given CPR training and certification. We’ve offered information on breast cancer screenings and presented workshops on stress and work/life balance, among other topics.” JCMC also provides referrals to a statewide network of doctors across RWJBarnabas Health, demonstrating the value of an integrated health care system.
In addition, Lord Abbett employees take part in hands-on employee engagement opportunities on-site with many JCMC programs.
“At Jersey City Medical Center, we develop ongoing relationships with our donors,” Kagan explains. “It’s a two-way street, a true partnership. We are deeply committed to helping the community be healthier, and that extends to people in the companies we work with.”
Learn about maternity services at Jersey City Medical Center. To learn about giving to Jersey City Medical Center, call 201-984-1270.