After an HCA Healthcare hospital discovered fractures on four infant patients in 2023, the Virginia health department found reporting deficiencies, and in 2024, three more infants had similar fractures, according to The Washington Post.
HCA's Henrico Doctors' Hospital in Richmond, Va., halted admissions into its neonatal intensive care unit in late 2024. The hospital said it conducted an internal investigation, informed the families of the three patients, and notified authorities and regulators.
On Jan. 3, Henrico County police arrested a nurse who formerly worked at the hospital since 2019. Erin Strotman, RN, was charged of malicious wounding and felony child abuse. Police are investigating the case at the hospital, reviewing dozens of videos from inside the NICU and reexamining the 2023 and 2024 cases as part of a broader investigation.
For infants needing NICU care, the hospital said healthcare workers will assess and stabilize them before facilitating a transfer to an appropriate facility, according to a Jan. 3 statement.
After Henrico Doctors' Hospital reported four infants suffered fractures in mid-2023, an unannounced inspection from the Virginia Department of Health found several deficiencies, the Post reported Jan. 11.
Hospital staff discovered the fractures between Aug. 5, 2023, and Sept. 5, 2023, the report said. Federal code requires healthcare workers to report suspected abuse within 24 hours, but the health department found a weekslong delay before the hospital alerted the department of social services.
"When we first discovered the fractures in 2023, we immediately launched an internal investigation and notified the families," an HCA spokesperson told Becker's. "Fractures in premature babies are not unheard of in neonatal intensive care units, given the development and size of the babies."
"Once we determined that the fractures could have been caused by something other than the development and size of the babies, we reported the fractures to the appropriate authorities, including [Child Protective Services], and fully assisted in the investigations they launched," according to the spokesperson.
Inspectors also said Henrico Doctors' Hospital did not keep a record of all employees who came in contact with NICU patients. The hospital implemented a plan of correction, which included more training, neonatologist-led daily examinations of each NICU patient and cameras in every NICU room.
These cameras seem to have led to Ms. Strotman's arrest, according to a criminal complaint obtained by the Post.
Video footage from Nov. 10 appeared to show her "applying pressure" to a 5-month-old boy's legs and pushing them so his feet were by his head. The infant "looked to be crying and in distress," the complaint said. He was later found to have multiple fractured ribs and a fractured right tibia and femur.
HCA Healthcare did not answer Becker's questions about the health department's report or if Henrico Doctors' Hospital has a projected reopening date for its NICU.