REWATCH: News 2 Today honors 2021 remarkable women of the Lowcountry

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD) – Four women were honored for being remarkable leaders in the community during a celebration Friday on the USS Yorktown on News 2 Today.

News 2 and our parent company, Nexstar Media Group, wanted to acknowledge the great contributions that women have made to our nation and local communities in honor of International Women’s Month.

The four finalists were selected by our local community members when we started back in December 2020 with nominations.

During News 2 Today, one winner of the four finalists was selected who will win a $1,000 donation under their name to the charity of their choice and be named the 2021 Lowcountry most ‘Remarkable Woman.”

Our nominees included Lt. Col. Pamela Barton, Dr. Romina Ilic, Ragina Saunders, and Pat Walker.

Congratulations to all of our finalists and especially our winner, Dr. Romina Ilic.

“I’m honored and humbled. I’m so inspired by the women sitting next to me, you’re all incredible,” said Dr. Ilic. “I’m lucky that I can do what I can do and it’s a privilege to take care of people.”

Suited up and ready for battle – including scrubs and masks – Dr. Romina Ilic, an anesthesiologist, walks through the halls of the hospital, creating plans to care for a new population of patients.

“It’s nice to be able to take care of patients and see them safely through surgery,” she said.

She’s the director of the Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit. “Typically, the ICU is where the sickest patients in the hospital end up, so those are the folks we focus on,” she said.

Focusing on those needing the most care while managing to reduce IV and catheter-related infections at Roper. “Oftentimes, they come in and you’re not sure necessarily why they are sick. You just know that they are really sick, so you may have a limited amount of time to figure it out before they get worse,” she explained.

Calling the shots during a pandemic has forced a new level of leadership because the enemy – COVID-19 – was new and unpredictable. “Early on it was a lack of information and trying to learn as you go and taking care of patients with a brand-new disease that we didn’t know that much about.”

She said it’s heartbreaking to not be able to help somebody when they are asking for help.

But COVID-19 is a war, and everyday she and her team are battling against this deadly disease and its affects.

“Logistically just finding space for patients because hospitals are at capacity, and so getting phone calls from other facilities and asking for transfers for patients who are really sick and need to get to a higher level of care, and not having space for them is tough,” she explained.

Her colleagues say she is tough. When patients go on a ventilator, Dr. Ilic peers down their throats knowing the procedure puts her at high risk of exposure to COVID-19.

“Most folks know going on a ventilator means that not only are you very ill but your mortality increases when you require mechanical ventilation, and that may be a marker just because you are that sick and need the extra care.”

When the words “healthcare workers on the front lines” are said, there is one who stands shoulder-to-shoulder with her staff, but for the many lives she’s saved or improved, she stands out.

“I love my job, and I’m really lucky I can do it with such amazing people at my side,” she said. “My family always knew I would be a doctor, but it took me a while to believe them. There was a litany of things I thought I would be, definitely not a physician for a very long time.”

Dr. Romina Ilic – a mother, doctor, athlete, and truly a remarkable woman.

Learn more about what makes each of these women remarkable not only during Women’s History Month but every day.

MEET THE FINALISTS