Elaina Erickson, BSN, RN, CCRN

When our 5-week-old daughter was admitted to the PICU with acute hypoxic respiratory failure secondary to a rare congenital lymphatic malformation, our world stopped. She was critically ill, intubated, and sedated to protect her fragile airway.

As parents, watching your newborn depend on a ventilator to breathe is a helpless, terrifying experience. For six straight days, Elaina Erickson was our daughter’s nurse. On paper, the goal sounded simple: “just keep the tube in.” But in reality, her care required extraordinary vigilance, skill, and compassion. Our daughter’s airway was critical. Every movement, every touch, every fluctuation in her vitals mattered. Elaina monitored her closely, anticipating changes before they became problems. She worked tirelessly to keep her calm and adequately sedated, preventing agitation that could jeopardize her airway. She carefully watched for and prevented ventilator-associated complications. She kept her clean, repositioned, and protected her delicate skin. She advocated for her needs in rounds and made sure her voice — and ours — was heard.

But what sets Elaina apart is that she didn’t just care for a ventilated patient. She cared for our baby. And she cared for us. In a room filled with machines, alarms, and uncertainty, Elaina created warmth. She gathered soft, homey blankets and tiny stuffed animals to make our daughter’s warmer feel less clinical and more like a nursery. She invited us to participate in her care — helping with bath time, encouraging our touch and our presence, even when we were afraid. She brought books from the Ronald McDonald cart so we could read to our intubated newborn, reminding us that even though she was sedated, she was still our baby, deserving of stories and love. Those small acts restored pieces of parenthood that critical illness tries to take away.

Throughout all of this, Elaina remained calm, personable, kind, and attentive. She explained what she was doing and why. She checked on us as much as she checked on our daughter. She balanced high-acuity care with mentorship, thoughtfully teaching trainees while never compromising the meticulous attention our daughter required. Watching her model both clinical excellence and compassionate care was remarkable. Elaina didn’t just “keep the tube in.” She protected our daughter’s airway, safeguarded her recovery, prevented complications, and created an environment where we could still bond with our child during one of the most frightening times of our lives. We will never forget those six days. Because of Elaina, they were filled not only with anxiety but with comfort, dignity, and hope. She is the embodiment of what the DAISY Award represents — extraordinary clinical skill paired with extraordinary heart.