Who is Erin Elizabeth Ann Strotman? What we know about NICU nurse arrested over Henrico Doctor’s Hospital babies abuse

Erin Elizabeth Ann Strotman, a former nurse at Henrico Doctors’ Hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) in Virginia, was arrested and charged with child abuse following an investigation into the incident that left three preemie babies with “unexplainable fractures."

The hospital has since shut down its neonatal intensive care unit, The New York Post has reported. Erin Elizabeth Ann Strotman now faces charges of malicious wounding, neglect, and felony child abuse, and the incident took place at Hernia Doctors’ Hospital in Richmond in December, a press release from officials reveals.

Reportedly, Erin Elizabeth Ann Strotman is a 26-year-old nurse from Chesterfield County, VA. She reportedly graduated as a registered nurse in 2019, though at the time of writing, not much else is known about her.

All we know about Erin Elizabeth Ann Strotman's alleged victims, all of whom were premature babies

Currently, the hospital's official website seems to have been taken down. However, as reported by multiple outlets, the statement uploaded on the same on December 24 reads:

"In late November/December, we discovered that three babies in our Henrico Doctors’ Hospital NICU had unexplainable fractures, similar to an incident involving four babies in the summer of 2023. We initiated a thorough internal investigation, informed the families and notified the proper authorities and regulatory agencies and worked collaboratively with them on their investigations."

The hospital also revealed that they would not be taking any more babies under their wing in the NICU out of caution, and have gone the extra mile to ensure better safety and security by installing live-streaming tech and mandating that their caregivers undergo safety training programs.

Per WRIC, the offense date for both of Erin Elizabeth Ann Strotman's charges has been listed as November 10, 2024. A spokesperson for the Henrico County Police said that officials are currently "reviewing dozens of videos from inside the NICU" out of fear that there may have been more victims.

Per The New York Post, "detectives are re-examining the 2023 and 2024 cases as part of this broader investigation,” cops said in the press release. The incident comes on the heels of something similar from the summer of 2023 when four babies were found injured.

At the time, one of the babies had a fractured leg, and another mother told 8News that her child had sustained 12 injuries while being cared for in the NICU.

“’The Henrico County Police Division is utilizing all available resources to ensure a thorough investigation into this matter,” the department said.

Just this past December, the parents of baby Noah shared their shock at finding out their son couldn't move his leg because his tibia was fractured.

“It was kind of discolored. I told the doctor on staff, got some x-rays, and we determined he had a fracture to his leg, so we are going to splint it for the next two weeks, and then she was like do you want to hold him?” Dominique Hickey told WTVR. “In my mind I’m like, I don’t want them to turn it around on us and say we broke his leg or anything like that so I was like, ‘No, we don’t want to hold him, we are just going to process this,'” he said.

Speaking with the outlet about Erin Elizabeth Ann Strotman, he said:

"It makes me sick, it truly makes me sick. This person’s mentally ill and — to do that to all those families … there’s no happiness that I can feel at this point.”

Upon meeting other parents who suffered similar fates, allegedly at the hands of Erin Elizabeth Ann Strotman, Hackey told the outlet, visibly emotional:

"I couldn’t help but … just to break down for that father and that mother, because I felt how I felt when I learned that my son had a fracture — and that was helpless,” he said. “And to know that to that degree that there was nothing that father could do to protect his son … it’s horrifying."

In the wake of Erin Elizabeth Ann Strotman's arrest, the healthcare system issued the following statement, as reported by Scallywag and Vagabond:

"There has been an ongoing investigation into fractures sustained by patients in our NICU, and this morning, the Henrico County Police Department arrested a former employee of the hospital in connection with that investigation. We have been assisting law enforcement in their ongoing investigation and will continue to do so. While fractures occasionally happen with pre-term babies since they lack full fetal bone development, we are actively working to determine how these fractures occurred."

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As for the remaining babies, more details about their injuries remain unknown. Police have also revealed that all updates will be provided with careful consideration, to not disrupt the ongoing investigation, citing the "sensitive nature" of the case.

Henrico Chief Eric D. English also expressed his appreciation for "the families' and public's patience as we work as thoroughly and expeditiously as possible to investigate every piece of evidence in connection to these cases."

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