Spotlight: Nurse Practitioner Kari Erickson, PNP, empowers families living with medical complexities

Caring for premature infants is a labor of love for nurse practitioner Kari Erickson, PNP. While most of these babies will receive support in our Level IV neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and the pediatric ICU before they go home, some need additional assistance after the NICU and may not be quite ready to leave hospital.

For these patients in transition, Erickson and the teams in M Health Fairview Children’s Hospital’s intermediate care unit provide critical care for patients and families with complex medical needs. “We are a step closer to home,” Erickson said.

Erickson, who works with University of Minnesota Physicians, was deeply involved in the unit’s launch in May 2023 and remains passionate about providing the best transitional care for families until they are ready to go home. We sat down with Erickson who shared her experience and what makes her job so fulfilling.

How did you find yourself taking care of critically ill patients?

I was a pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) nurse for 9 years with M Health Fairview before I went back to school to get certified as a nurse practitioner. When children transition out of the ICU their needs change, and I could see that transitional care was important. This drove me to seek advanced training and to focus on this area. After I had children of my own, the incredible care I received from my nurses during labor and delivery really made me pursue nursing as a career. I think nurses are some of our first teachers on how to be a parent.

What is the intermediate care unit?

The intermediate care unit is a separate unit designed to take care of young patients with complex medical needs or who are technology dependent. We see patients who have had tracheostomies, who are on ventilators for respiratory support and those who need feeding tubes to help them eat and grow. The pediatric patients we see are one of the fastest growing groups of patients right now. As healthcare and technology advances, we save infants who are being born earlier and earlier. Which means these newborns will need more advanced care both in the hospital and when they go home.

Why is the care model important?

Moving from an NICU into a care environment better suited to meet developmental, social, and emotional needs is an important step for children once they are healthy enough to leave the ICU. For the patients and families who are still reliant on technology (like ventilators to help them breathe), we help support their transition to home easier – making sure they have the resources, the education, and the confidence to care for their babies and children who require different level of care.

Why is the work important to you?

This is my primary jam, my specialty. I’m working with families every day of the week to help them conquer their goals and meet their milestones. Most of these patients will have complex needs throughout their lives. The continuity of care we provide from our unit is another huge part of what I do. Every family has different needs. We make sure the families get connected with the specialists they will work with outside of the hospital, we make sure they have the equipment they need, the training to use the technology. Ultimately, we help bring them a little peace once they are ready to leave.