A Virginia hospital were babies were allegedly abused by a nurse blamed a newborn’s fracture on the fact that he was born premature.
A grieving mother, 30, had already suffered massive heartbreak when one of her premature twin boys died in July, 2023, at the NICU in Henrico Doctors’ Hospital in Richmond.
Then, two months later, a doctor called her to say they had found mysterious bruises on her surviving son, who was still being treated at the NICU. An X-ray then revealed the boy had somehow suffered a broken wrist.
‘They told me and my husband that he had fragile bones because he was a preemie,’ the boy’s mother, who asked to remain anonymous, told DailyMail.com.
‘They were pretty much blaming it on the fact that he was a preemie. And I didn’t believe that. Not one bit.’
The mother said and her husband were outraged, as she thought the bruises looked like fingerprints, and confronted the staff about them.
‘And I made them look at him and I was like, «does it look like fingerprints?» And they all nodded their heads and couldn’t tell me an answer as to why this had happened.
A year on Erin Elizabeth Strotman, 26, was charged with malicious wounding and felony child abuse at the hospital after up to seven other babies suffered fractures.
A mother told DailyMail.com that staff at Henrico hospital in Richmond, where at least seven babies were abused, claimed her son’s wrist was fractured because he was a preemie with fragile bones
Shocking court documents revealed nurse Erin Elizabeth Strotman, 26, was caught on camera placing her weight on the legs of a premature baby – which resulted in a broken left femur
‘I saw that she was on my son’s service quite a few times,’ the twins’ mother said. ‘She just didn’t seem like she would be one of those people… She was one of those people that you just never would think that would hurt a child.’
‘And when I saw her initials, I immediately cried because I just I feel so disgusted and I feel annoyed with the hospital and that they didn’t do more,’ the mother added.
The surviving twin was one of at least seven premature babies who suffered broken bones at the hospital by a mysterious employee, according to an investigation by the state’s social services.
The hospital put several nurses on leave after three babies were injured in 2023, but more babies suffered fracture when the nurses, including Strotman, returned to work in 2024.
‘I’m very mad that it took this long, because this was back in 2023. So it’s just very disturbing that the hospital literally put her on paid leave and had her return,’ the mother told DailyMail.com.
The NICU at Henrico was shut down in December after authorities opened a probe into the inexplicable fractures.
Investigators went about reviewing video footage from inside the NICU to determine if there had been any staff misconduct or unreported accidents.
So far, Strotman has been charged with abusing one of the babies, with that alleged victim only identified by the initials Y.H.
The mother who spoke to DailyMail.com said she would like Strotman to be charged with abusing her son if officials find evidence of her involvement in his injuries.
But the experience at Henrico has left her marked for life, and she has also accused the hospital of giving her other son an undignified death.
Strotman is seen with her mother after her 2019 graduation from nursing school
The incidents took place in the NICU unit at Henrico Doctors’ Hospital. They later installed ‘angel cameras’ which court documents alleged caught Strotman carrying out the heinous act
The mom said that after the twin’s death, she specifically spoke to the hospital’s staff about about how important it was for her that her surviving son received the best possible care.
‘After our son died, we would come and visit our other twin when we weren’t at work, making sure that all the nurses knew that his brother had passed and we don’t want this to happen again,’ the mother said.
‘And it just, it was just a really traumatizing event to see and live.’
The mother is working with attorney Peter Anderson, who says he has heard from additional victims of the Henrico NICU and a civil lawsuit is a possibility.
‘Our clients trusted Henrico Doctors’ Hospital with their most vulnerable loved ones. The hospital’s failure to protect these innocent babies is an inexcusable breach of trust,’ Anderson said.
‘Simple measures could have been taken to prevent these babies from being harmed. Instead, the hospital put profits over patient safety. We intend to hold the institution fully accountable for the grievous harm inflicted upon these families and their children. We believe strength in numbers will help all victims in our forthcoming civil case against the hospital.’
Strotman was caught on video breaking the thigh bone of one five-month-old boy in the neonatal intensive care, according to court documents. The child was also found to have a fractured right tibia and several broken ribs, the report noted.
Social services told parents Dominique and Tori Hackey that they determined an NICU employee at the hospital caused their son Noah’s fracture
Noah was one of seven babies who suffered inexplicable injuries at Henrico Doctors’ Hospital in Richmond, Virginia from 2023 to 2024
The nurse took the boy – identified only as Y.H. – by the legs and then applied pressure to them, wrote Detective Megan Lynch.
‘Ms. Stotman was observed to be placing her weight down on the legs of Y.H.’ added Lynch.
‘Ms. Strotman was observed then taking both legs and pushing them backwards to where Y.H.’s feet were at his head.
‘Y.H. looked to be crying and in distress,’ the detective wrote, noting that the boy’s left leg moved normally but the right did not.’
The video was made on November 10 after Strotman had returned to work after being put on paid leave after the 2023 injuries on babies.
Detectives are re-examining the 2023 and 2024 cases as part of the broader investigation.
Strotman has so far only been charged in one case of abuse, but police are still probing whether she is tied to the other injured babies.
‘We are both shocked and saddened by this development in the investigation and are focused on continuing to care for our patients and providing support to our colleagues who have been deeply and personally impacted by this investigation,’ HCA Virginia said in a statement.
Strotman, pictured rear row at her graduation, has so far only been charged with abusing one baby
‘We are grateful to those colleagues, who have dedicated their professional lives to the care and safety of our patients, as well as to law enforcement and the other agencies who have worked aggressively and tirelessly with us on this investigation.’
Strotman’s arrest came after Dominique and Tori Hackey spoke out after Virginia Child Services informed them that their newborn baby Noah had been abused by an employee at the NICU when he suffered a fractured leg following his premature birth.
Noah was doing well until Dominique noticed his left leg was not moving.
‘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 told WTVR.
Dominique was present at Strotman’s arraignment on Friday, along with three of the other families who had babies that were allegedly abused at the NICU.
An X-ray showed that Noah’s tibia had been fractured, and, according to Dominique, the hospital suggested the injury was accidental.
‘That’s what they told us, that it could have been done because an injection was given and maybe they did it too hard and it caused the fracture,’ Dominique said.
Dominique said it concerned him so he contacted child services. In September he received a review of their investigation, which found there was level 1 physical abuse of Noah – the worst level in Virginia.
