A photo of Erika Stalets.

Interim Director, Division of Critical Care

Associate Chief of Staff, Division of Critical Care

Physician, Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU)

Associate Professor, UC Department of Pediatrics

513-636-4259

513-636-4267

Board Certified

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"I’ve learned to trust my own feelings and the feelings of others — especially a parent — when something doesn't seem quite right. When talking with patients and families, my approach is to always tell the truth, even if it's, 'I don't know,' and especially when it's hard."

My Biography & Research

Biography

As a pediatric intensivist, I specialize in pediatric critical care medicine. I care for infants, children and young adults who are critically ill or injured and need intensive care in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center.

I am the PICU medical director. To give our patients the best care possible, I partner with our clinical nursing directors to oversee the unit's clinical operations. Patients may also need attention in the PICU after surgery, for administration and management of high-risk therapies, or increased monitoring and nursing care.

A PICU stay can be overwhelming and frightening, especially when it’s traumatic and unexpected. I believe having information can help. Our team invites parents and family members to join rounds and ask questions. And all questions are welcome.

I’ve learned to trust my own feelings and the feelings of others — especially a parent — when something doesn't seem quite right. When talking with patients and families, my approach is to always tell the truth, even if it's, "I don't know," and especially when it's hard.

In my research and as an institutional and divisional quality improvement leader, I apply quality improvement methodologies and implementation science to improve care for hospital patients. Rigorous quality improvement can transform pediatric health and healthcare delivery, decrease waste and improve efficiencies. My main projects focus on preventing hospital-acquired central line-associated bloodstream infections and improving the quick recognition and management of septic shock.

Academic Affiliation

Associate Professor, UC Department of Pediatrics

Clinical Divisions

Pediatric Intensive Care Unit PICU

Research Divisions

Critical Care

My Education

MD: Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, Springfield, IL, 1997-2001.

Residency: Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN, 2001-2005.

Fellowship: Pediatric Critical Care, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 2006-2009.

MS: Clinical and Translational Research, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. Cincinnati, OH, 2009-2013.

Scholar: Quality Scholars Program in Healthcare Transformation, Anderson Center for Health Systems Excellence, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 2009-2013.

Certifications: General Pediatrics, American Board of Pediatrics, 2005, 2015; Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, American Board of Pediatrics, 2010.

My Publications

The impact of public health interventions on critical illness in the pediatric emergency department during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Dean, P; Zhang, Y; Frey, M; Shah, A; Edmunds, K; Boyd, S; Schwartz, H; Frey, T; Stalets, E; Schaffzin, J; et al. 2020.

Identification of the Physiologically Difficult Airway in the Pediatric Emergency Department. Dean, PN; Hoehn, EF; Geis, GL; Frey, ME; Cabrera-Thurman, MK; Kerrey, BT; Zhang, Y; Stalets, EL; Zackoff, MW; Maxwell, AR; et al. Academic Emergency Medicine. 2020; 27:1241-1248.

The Effects of Care Team Roles on Situation Awareness in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit: A Prospective Cross-Sectional Study. Soberano, BT; Brady, P; Yunger, T; Jones, R; Stoneman, E; Sosa, T; Stalets, EL; Zackoff, M; Chima, R; Tegtmeyer, K; et al. Journal of hospital medicine (Online). 2020; 15:594-597.

Diurnal Variation in Medical Emergency Team Calls at a Tertiary Care Children's Hospital. Conway, SR; Tegtmeyer, K; Wheeler, DS; Loechtenfeldt, A; Stalets, EL; Brady, PW. Pediatric Quality and Safety. 2020; 5.

Reducing Point-of-care Blood Gas Testing in the Intensive Care Unit through Diagnostic Stewardship: A Value Improvement Project. Tchou, MJ; May, S; Holcomb, J; Tanner-Edwards, E; Good, K; Frazier, M; Stalets, EL; Dewan, M. Pediatric Quality and Safety. 2020; 5.

Informed Consent Should Not Be Required for Apnea Testing and Arguing It Should Misses the Point. Antommaria, AH M; Sveen, W; Stalets, EL. American Journal of Bioethics. 2020; 20:25-27.

Improving Timely Recognition and Treatment of Sepsis in the Pediatric ICU. Vidrine, R; Zackoff, M; Paff, Z; Seger, B; Satterlee, M; Buenaventura, E; Smith, C; Pfeiffer, S; Sahay, RD; Stalets, EL; et al. Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety. 2020; 46:299-307.

Design, Implementation, and Validation of a Pediatric ICU Sepsis Prediction Tool as Clinical Decision Support. Dewan, M; Vidrine, R; Zackoff, M; Paff, Z; Seger, B; Pfeiffer, S; Hagedorn, P; Stalets, EL. Applied Clinical Informatics. 2020; 11:218-225.

Clinical Practice Update: High Flow Nasal Cannula Therapy for Bronchiolitis Outside the ICU in Infants. Piper, L; Stalets, EL; Statile, AM. Journal of hospital medicine (Online). 2020; 14:E1-E3.

Anti-influenza immune plasma for the treatment of patients with severe influenza A: a randomised, double-blind, phase 3 trial. Beigel, JH; Aga, E; Elie-Turenne, MC; Cho, J; Tebas, P; Clark, CL; Metcalf, JP; Ozment, C; Raviprakash, K; Beeler, J; et al. The Lancet Respiratory Medicine. 2019; 7:941-950.