When Frederic and Jessica Repond learned that their unborn son, James, had severe brain abnormalities, they didn’t know where to turn. The pregnancy was high-risk for Jessica; James likely would not survive outside the womb for long.
Jessica’s doctors presented abortion as their only option. “They weren’t providing us any information, any help whatsoever,” Jessica Repond told the Register.
Abortion is so common in the New York City area where the Reponds live, most doctors don’t know how to care for a child with life-limiting conditions, her OB-GYN explained. But the couple kept looking, and as Jessica neared the 20-week mark of her pregnancy, they found the doctor they were looking for: Dr. Elvira Parravicini, professor of pediatrics and director of the Neonatal Comfort Care Program at Columbia University Medical Center.
“I sent her this long email saying, ‘I want to help my baby, but no one’s willing to help me,’” Jessica said. “Someone on her team responded the next day. They said, ‘We want to help you. We want to be there for you.’”
This was the ray of light the couple needed. “Someone was on our side for the first time in months,” Jessica said. Like hundreds of other families facing difficult pregnancies, the Reponds found an advocate in Parravicini.
Parravicini began developing the Neonatal Comfort Care Program (NCCP) in 2008 with the goal of serving infants with short life expectancies through specialized medical protocols not common at most hospitals. From prenatal diagnosis to birth and beyond, the NCCP helps parents develop a plan for prenatal care, delivery and postpartum care and coordinates bereavement support and counseling for families should their child not survive.
In recognition of her work in defense of the dignity of unborn human life, Parravicini was awarded the Evangelium Vitae Medal on April 27. The medal, which is awarded annually by the de Nicola Center for Ethics and Culture at the University of Notre Dame, is the nation’s most important award for heroes of the pro-life movement. O. Carter Snead, director of the de Nicola Center and Charles E. Rice Professor of Law, presented Parravicini with the medal during a dinner attended by hundreds of Notre Dame students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends of the de Nicola Center. Parravicini is the 13th recipient of Evangelium Vitae Medal, which is named after Pope John Paul II’s 1995 encyclical and is awarded to those who significantly advance the “gospel of life.”
God Is in Charge
Born in Milan, Italy, Parravicini completed pediatric residency and a neonatal fellowship through the University of Milan. She moved to the United States in 1994 and earned a certification in palliative medicine at Harvard University before establishing the NCCP. A devout Catholic, Parravicini credits Msgr. Luigi Guissani, founder of the Communion and Liberation movement, with her decision to become a doctor.
“For a while, I thought I was going to be able to heal all babies,” Parravicini said after receiving the medal. “I was going to fight for them, and I would succeed. This sentiment and this decision did not last long because I learned soon … that I am not God. He — not me — is in charge.”
Though medical care may be insufficient to save the life of a child with a life-limiting condition, Parravicini sees her team’s medical care as a way to honor the life of the child, no matter how short.
“As I always say to parents when I meet them prenatally, ‘My mission is to save your baby’s life. But no matter what, I am walking with your baby, you and your family. I will not abandon you,’” she said during her remarks.
For the Reponds, this commitment was invaluable. Parravicini helped them develop a plan that addressed Jessica’s health risks and gave James his best chance at life outside the womb. James was born alive via cesarean section and was immediately baptized, but he only lived for four hours after birth. Parravicini’s team ensured that Frederic and Jessica could be with their son for his whole life.
“I just got to caress him, be with him and cuddle him,” Frederic told the Register. “It was such a precious moment, and there was no impatience.”
Four hours later, James died. Parravicini’s team advocated for James to stay with the Reponds for several days in the hospital, giving the parents an opportunity to grieve their loss and receive visitors. Parravicini’s team coordinated a time for their 2-year-old son, John, to visit the hospital and see his brother, James. “We have so many photos of it all,” Frederic said. The Reponds received more than 700 photographs of James taken by the NCCP team.
“Dr. Parravicini is very focused on the babies — that’s her specialty,” Jessica explained. “But, at the same time, her team does so much for the family. They’re thinking about your living children, thinking about creating memories, thinking about how you as a mom or a dad are going to process all of this. They’re focused on the whole picture and not just a baby who has passed or is expected to pass.”
“When it came to leaving the hospital, they are the last ones we see holding our baby. They took him to the morgue, and they even came to his funeral,” Frederic said. “Their team has helped turn around what seems like a tragedy into something very beautiful.”
Parravicini’s Catholic faith inspires her work. “Elvira would be doing this as a professional of high credentials, as a physician — but she’s also doing it as a woman of faith,” commented Cardinal Timothy Dolan. “And in her mind, the two cannot be separated.”
“Dr. Parravicini is a living saint,” Snead told the Register. “She embodies the self-emptying unconditional love that lies at the heart of the culture-of-life movement. Her work with mothers, babies and families is an incandescent living witness to everything that the Evangelium Vitae Medal represents. And she is making a real difference.”
The Reponds were already determined to give their son his best chance at life, but many women would consider abortion under those circumstances. “Eighty percent of mothers who simply get a life-limiting diagnosis for their unborn child choose abortion,” Snead explained. “However, for mothers who learn about Dr. Parravicini’s neonatal hospice program, that number flips, and 80% choose to carry their babies to term.”
Through the years, Parravicini’s team has served thousands of families. “I started with 13 [families] in 2008, and, last year, we met many families in more than 800 encounters,” she said at the reception. In addition to providing care to infants and their families, Parravicini also works to educate others. The NCCP hosts an annual training program in their unique approach to perinatal care, equipping doctors across the U.S. and the world to implement compassionate, life-affirming care for infants with life-limiting conditions. Columbia University Media Relations did not respond to request for comment.
“Life is given, and the first day of life and the last day of life is not decided by us,” Parravicini said at Notre Dame. “Saving the life of these babies is serving the life of these babies as God wants.”