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Inset: Erin Strotman (Henrico County Jail). Background: Henrico Doctors’ Hospital (Google Maps).
The Virginia Department of Health determined a infirmary “failed to forestall abuse” erstwhile a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) caregiver allegedly broke the bones of premature babies.
The DOH issued the study this period aft 26-year-old Erin Elizabeth Ann Strotman was charged successful January with malicious wounding and felony child abuse in transportation to an incidental that occurred successful November astatine Henrico Doctors’ Hospital successful Richmond.
A copy of the DOH’s study by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services was posted by section CBS affiliate WTVR. It details the alleged maltreatment Strotman inflicted connected the infant. Strotman is identified arsenic EMP11 successful the report, the TV presumption reports. Executives and unit reviewed videos from Strotman’s attraction of the kid successful question connected Nov. 10. The video allegedly shows Strotman “forcefully” pushing the baby’s legs towards the infant’s thorax and face. She released the legs and repeated the action, the study says.
Strotman allegedly assaulted the kid successful a akin mode connected Oct. 29 and Nov. 13. In addition, she seemingly forced the infant’s caput down connected their thorax and lone held the babe by their caput and leg, the study alleges. The babe evidently was impacted by Strotman’s actions arsenic shown by the infant’s accrued bosom complaint and decreased oxygen levels, the study noted.
The present erstwhile caregiver besides violated different infirmary policies specified arsenic holding the babe with 1 manus and not putting rails up connected cribs erstwhile she was not supervising the baby, the study said.
Hospital unit seemed dumbfounded aft watching the videos.
“We don’t cognize wherefore [EMP11] is doing thing [EMP11] is doing,” 1 worker told authorities investigators.
Other videos allegedly showed Strotman “forcefully” inserting a suction instrumentality into the baby’s nostril successful an effort astatine intubation. However, nurses watching the videos stated Strotman was utilizing the incorrect device, the study said.
State investigators determined the infirmary “failed to forestall abuse; place injuries of chartless root arsenic indicators of imaginable maltreatment oregon neglect; study and analyse injuries of chartless origin.”
The study besides noted Strotman was antecedently disciplined on with different caregiver successful September 2023 aft 4 babies suffered fractures. Strotman was placed connected admirative permission for a week and allowed to instrumentality aft receiving training, the study said.
As Law&Crime previously reported, Strotman was indicted connected six caller felony kid maltreatment and neglect charges this week, tribunal records say. According to local CBS affiliate WTVR, the charges subordinate to her attraction of 4 babies betwixt 2022 and 2024. The neglect complaint is related to her attraction of a 5th babe who was not injured.
Commonwealth’s Attorney Shannon Taylor told reporters Tuesday aft Strotman’s archetypal circular of charges, a family’s lawyer made her bureau alert of an battle backmost successful 2022. No 1 had alerted authorities astir the battle astatine the clip it occurred, she said.
“Certainly erstwhile you’re talking astir a process wherever mandated reporters are expected to notify the bureau who oversees immoderate country we are covering, and determination is simply a nonaccomplishment to bash that, that is ever concerning,” she said.
Taylor said authorities are inactive investigating allegations that Strotman assaulted 4 different infants. She has not been charged successful those cases.
Strotman allegedly injured aggregate children. According to the hospital, three babies suffered “unexplained fractures” successful November 2024. Four different babies suffered akin injuries successful the summertime of 2023, the infirmary said.
Investigators with the Henrico County Police Division reviewed dozens of videos from wrong the NICU and were capable to constituent the digit astatine Strotman. Detectives proceed to comb done evidence, including “hundreds of hours of footage” successful hopes of bringing justness to each babe who suffered abuse.
“We admit the families’ and public’s patience arsenic we enactment arsenic thoroughly and expeditiously arsenic imaginable to analyse each portion of grounds successful transportation to these cases,” Henrico Police Chief Eric D. English said successful a statement.
The infirmary successful a press release described Strotman arsenic a “former employee.” As a precaution, the aesculapian halfway unopen down its NICU portion the probe proceeded. It reopened successful February.
“We are some shocked and saddened by this improvement successful the probe and are focused connected continuing to attraction for our patients and providing enactment to our colleagues who person been profoundly and personally impacted by this investigation,” the connection said. “We are grateful to those colleagues, who person dedicated their nonrecreational lives to the attraction and information of our patients, arsenic good arsenic to instrumentality enforcement and the different agencies who person worked aggressively and tirelessly with america connected this investigation.”
One of the babies allegedly abused successful the summertime of 2023 was Noah Hackey, who suffered a breached tibia. His begetter Dominque Hackey explained to WTVR that Noah and his duplicate Micah were calved prematurely astatine the infirmary successful August 2023 and spent clip unneurotic successful the NICU.
When Noah was astir 2 weeks aged they noticed immoderate discoloration successful his near leg. An X-ray unveiled a fracture of the tibia. The household filed a study with Child Protective Services, which determined an worker was liable for breaking the boy’s leg, but did not find which employee.
Hackey was flabbergasted that his lad wasn’t the lone 1 allegedly abused.
“They failed strictly connected aggregate levels with aggregate antithetic families, and they request to beryllium held accountable arsenic good due to the fact that that shouldn’t person happened,” helium told WTVR. “If they were suspicious of immoderate idiosyncratic capable to fto them spell they shouldn’t person brought them back. They failed, elemental arsenic that.”
Prosecutors person besides obtained Strotman’s substance messages that they accidental provided penetration into her mindset.
During a enslaved proceeding earlier this year, prosecutors entered immoderate of Strotman’s substance messages into the record, according to a courtroom study from Richmond CBS affiliate WTVR. In a substance connection from October 2023, she allegedly said she had been pacing and felt similar she took “cocaine again” adjacent though she hadn’t. She besides said she felt similar she had a property disorder.
“I consciousness manic,” she wrote. “It takes everything successful maine not to commencement s—.”
The time earlier her apprehension she allegedly texted she was “five seconds distant from checking myself into crisis.”
Strotman remains escaped connected bond.
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