Over the past 30 years, Stephanie Erickson, MSW, PSW, LCSW, CADTS, has developed expertise in objectively evaluating situations in which abuse or neglect allegations are made about a vulnerable person and presenting her findings to the court to demonstrate the relationship, if any, between the alleged abuse or neglect and the vulnerable person’s ability to function. The vulnerable individuals with whom she has extensive experience include children, adults, and older adults, many of whom have a mental illness, physical illness, dementia, or a developmental disability. These evaluations often require assessment of not only the vulnerable individual, but also family dynamics, caregivers, and healthcare organizations, such as nursing homes, board and care homes, assisted care homes, adult family homes, the child welfare system, the adult welfare system, and the school system. As a forensic social worker, much of her work involves serving as an expert on child welfare, elder care, elder abuse, conservatorship, and nursing homes. As a practicing social worker, she is also able to render expert opinions on the professional conduct of social workers.

Throughout her career, Ms. Erickson has made it standard practice to visit individuals in their home environments, whether that is a family home, foster home, nursing home, board and care, assisted care home, or hospital to ensure that her evaluation includes observations about the availability and interaction of services, resources, care, caregivers, healthcare professionals, families, and community workers and their influence on the vulnerable person’s functioning. These environmental evaluations provide clinical insights about interpersonal relationships, family dynamics, safety, staffing, services, and day-to-day functioning and needs. In addition, Ms. Erickson facilitates interviews with family members, caregivers, healthcare professionals, community resource providers, nursing home administrators, staff, and other interested persons to integrate the observations and perspectives of many individuals in the vulnerable person’s entourage. This approach is neutral and inclusive to understand fully how an individual or organization is functioning.

Ms. Erickson has worked in a multitude of settings throughout her career, giving her a holistic understanding of the influences that impact a person’s functioning over the life cycle. She has worked in the Child Welfare system investigating child abuse allegations; as a clinical social worker for a hospice, building and supervising school-based mental health services; as a therapist in a high school setting, at a domestic violence shelter, at a homeless shelter; as a clinical social worker in a home care setting, in custody mediation; as a private practitioner, providing therapy for children, adolescents, adults, families, and older adults; and in a network of nursing homes.

Ms. Erickson has been a Forensic Expert with Park Dietz & Associates since March 2023.