At the Ward Family Heart Center at Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Mo., using an inter-disciplinary team called CHAMP® (Cardiac High Acuity Monitoring Program), nurses like Lori Erickson, MSN, CPNP-PC, CHAMP clinical program manager, are saving lives of babies born with single ventricle heart disease who are in the critical inter-stage period between the first and second stages of surgery.

CHAMP provides families with a tablet PC that has a proprietary app installed to enable nearly-instantaneous in-home monitoring and to improve communication during this vulnerable time, while allowing the infants and their families to spend more time at home. We had the chance to speak with Lori about the program, the importance of technology in nursing, the future of patient care, and more.