In 2025, the NICU at the Women’s & Children’s Center at 
Moses Cone Hospital partnered with Meagan Patillo, Executive 
Director of Family Support Network of Central Carolina 
(FSNCC), and Lillian Wright, Senior Patient Experience 
Manager for Cone Health, to establish a Parent and Family 
Advisory Council (PFAC). This newly formed council allows 
NICU staff to actively listen and explore what works well and 
what is needed to improve parent experiences. 
The council includes several parents who had infants in the 
unit within the last few years, NICU leaders and representatives 
from FSNCC and Patient Experience. The council meets 
monthly, and NICU leaders attend meetings every other 
month. In other months, parents explore their experiences 
and insights with each other. They bring suggestions to NICU 
leaders in subsequent meetings for further discussion. 
 
“It has been rewarding to see how relationships are built 
among the members, and how much we gain insight into what 
is beneficial in our current culture. One of the best outcomes 
is a list of thoughtful suggestions that will enhance parent 
experience in the unit,” says Susan Jones, BSN, RN.
The information captured from this group is combined with 
feedback from Press Ganey patient experience surveys and 
comments from parent rounding. The combined information 
will be used to guide changes in how NICU staff communicate 
with parents and inform policies and processes that need to 
be refined or developed.
Advisory council feedback has guided white board updates 
and produced ways to enhance parent participation in 
MyChart accounts for their infants. MyChart has become an 
important pipeline for parents to have timely communication 
with physicians and support staff. 
Pictured are members of the team who worked to develop the 
NICU Parent and Family Advisory Council. Left to right: Susan 
Jones, NICU Department Director; Meagan Patillo, Executive 
Director, FSNCC; Melissa Brooks, FSNCC NICU Support; and Lillian 
Wright, Sr. Patient Experience Manager.  Not pictured: Ben Rattray, 
DO, NICU Medical Director, and Carmen Cederholm, MSN, NNP BC, 
NICU NNP Director.   
NICU Parent and Family Council Enhances 
Parent Experience
“Cone Health has long 
embraced the belief that parents 
and families are an extension of 
the infant and an integral part of 
care,” says Susan Jones, NICU 
Department Director. “We are 
thrilled to have the voices of the 
parent to enhance our promise 
that we are right here with you.” 
14
NURSING IMPACT REPORT 2025
OUR COMPASSION IN ACTION

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