For half of Russell's ten years in the CAF, she served as Base Surgeon at Ottawa's National Defense Medical Clinic.

[9] Russell became a familiar public figure to New Brunswickers during the COVID-19 pandemic, as she took part in daily televised briefings, explaining the extent of the epidemic and the measures put forward by the government to fight it.

[4] In addition to information about the pandemic, Russell frequently suggested to viewers ways to improve their well-being and mental health while in confinement.

[4][10] She asked people to set aside dearly-held traditions such as Easter family gatherings and maintain discipline to limit the spread of the virus, even though new Brunswick was doing better than adjacent jurisdictions.

[12] Russell makes good use of her proficiency in French, responding to questions in that language to convey information to the province's Acadian population.