Melody M. Hernandez, PhD, MS, BSN, RN, serves as the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) Telehealth Registered Nurse at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital in Miami, FL. She was awarded her associate and bachelor’s degrees in nursing from EDP University in Puerto Rico. Hernandez first became acquainted with Nicklaus Children’s as a hospital volunteer, then joined the staff as a registered nurse in 2015. She has worked in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) for seven years, providing expert nursing care. Since 2021, she has been instrumental in supporting the hospital’s nurse-led Baby Steps Program, which provides telehealth transition of care support for families of infants discharged from the NICU. This program has helped reduce readmissions and provides patient families with anticipatory guidance and expert nursing support during the first two weeks after NICU discharge. Hernandez obtained her master’s degree and doctorate in biomedical sciences from the University of Science, Arts and Technology in Olveston, Monteserrat in 2018 and 2019 respectively. In 2022, Hernandez received a doctor of medicine degree from Georgetown American University in Georgetown, Guyana.
