Northwell EMS director honored as Medical Hero of the Year

Emergency medical technician and paramedic Bernard Robinson, who serves as director of operations for Northwell Health’s Center for Emergency Medical Services, was named the winner of the Gold Stevie Award for Frontline Medical Hero of the Year in the annual American Business Awards. 

The Stevie Awards honor organizations and individuals for outstanding performances and achievements in the workplace. 

During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, Robinson, of Valley Stream, worked side-by-side with his team transporting upwards of 100 patients a day, most of them infected with the coronavirus.

By the end of the month, Robinson contracted the virus himself and was admitted to North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset with dangerously low blood oxygen levels. After participating in a clinical trial at the hospital, Robinson began to recover and returned to work two weeks later. 

“We geared up and did what we had to do as emergency medical service professionals,” Robinson said in a written statement. “If hospital workers are the front line, we in EMS are the special forces that venture behind enemy lines into uncontrolled environments to retrieve and rescue the sick. As a leader, I wouldn’t have asked my staff to enter into a situation that I wasn’t willing to enter myself. We helped thousands of people throughout the crisis and risked exposure with every call.”

Robinson was also recognized during the Xfinity 500 NASCAR race in Oct. 2020, with his name on the side of driver Kurt Busch’s No. 1 Chevrolet Camaro.