Dr. Erik Southard
Education
- D.N.P. - Systems Leadership and Health Policy, Johns Hopkins University - 2010
- M.S.N. - Family Nurse Practitioner, Indiana State University - 2003
- B.S.N. - Nursing, Indiana State University - 2001
- A.S. - Nursing, Vincennes University - 1999
Professional Webpage
www.southard-and-associates.comAwards and Honors
- American Association of Nurse Practitioners State Award for Excellence - 2017
- Distinguished Alumni Award - 2016
- Partnership Award - 2016
Licensures and Certifications
- Family Nurse Practitioner - American Nurse Credentialing Center - 2010
- Preventure Certification - CHU Sainte-Justine Research Center - 2021
Consulting
- Health outcomes evaluation and strategic planning. - Rural Health Innovation Collaborative - 2014
Teaching Interests
- Health Policy, Evidence-Based Practice, Leadership
Intellectual Contributions
- Bacterial meningitis: Rapid recognition prevents patient harm. - American Nurse Today, Silver Spring, MD
- Confessions of Untenured Chairs - The Academic Chair - 2017
- Dental Abscess: Early recognition for a positive outcome - American Nurse Today, Doylestown, PA - 2020
- Dying to be thin: Recognizing and treating anorexia in adolescents - Women’s Healthcare: A Clinical Journal for NPs, Washington, DC - 2015
- Helping patients who harm themselves - American Nurse Today, Doylestown, PA - 2016
Research Interests
- Telemedicine, Simulation, Patient Privacy, Medical malpractice
University Service
- Role: Member - Institutional Review Board 2018 - 2022
- Role: Member - Faculty Senate 2020 - 2022
- Role: Member - College Executive Committee 2018 - 2021
- Role: Member - Faculty Economic Benefits Committee 2020 - 2022
Professional Service
- Role: Board of Directors of a Company - Westminster Village 2019
- Role: Member - Union Hospital Foundation Board 2020 - 2025
- - Union Hospital Clinton Foundation Member 2020 - 2022
Public/Community Service
- Role: Member - Charter Member, Guys Who GIve, Wabash Valley Community Foundation 2014
Dr. Erik Southard earned an Associate Degree in Nursing from Vincennes University in 1999 before moving to Terre Haute to start his nursing career at Union Hospital. Southard, a native of Odon, Indiana, completed his Bachelor of Science and Master's in Nursing at Indiana State University. Southard worked for Union Hospital Health Group as a float nurse and an intensive care nurse while finishing his undergraduate and graduate degrees. His masters’ thesis “The Effectiveness of Chronic Disease Management for People with Diabetes Mellitus” earned him a position as a Project Associate for the Richard G. Lugar Center for Rural Health. Southard next served as the Director of Special Projects at Lugar Center before taking the Executive Director position. Southard served as the Executive Director at Lugar Center for nearly two years before deciding to go back to clinical care. Southard has been instrumental in the growth of store-and-forward and live telemedicine in Indiana. He also assisted in securing funding for Indiana to expand fiber networks into rural Indiana for healthcare and business development. He has also been involved in employee wellness, electronic health records and chronic disease management projects. His clinical experiences include industrial, correctional, mental health, indigent care populations, family medicine and occupational health. Southard worked as a Family Nurse Practitioner for Vermillion Parke Community Health Center before accepting a tenure-track Assistant Professorship in the Department of Advanced Practice Nursing at Indiana State University. Southard continues to practice, teach, and to provide healthcare consulting services for a variety of clients. His doctoral dissertation was titled, “Can Telemedicine Enhance Rural Mental Healthcare Access in a Critical Access Hospital Emergency Room in Rural Indiana?” This has since been published in the Journal of Telemedicine and e-Health. Southard graduated from The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore Maryland, in May of 2010 with a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree focusing on health systems leadership and health policy. Future interests include health research, health promotion, evidence-based medicine, patient-centered medical care, malpractice/risk mitigation, patient safety, health care reform, and high-fidelity simulation. Erik is an avid outdoorsman and loves spending time with his wife, son and daughter.
Masters Thesis “The Effectiveness of Chronic Disease Management for People with Diabetes Mellitus” Scrogham, R., Baron, J., Laws, S., Serrichio, M., Southard, E. & Zuerner, J. (2009)WVideo Conferencing Essentials. Indiana Telehealth Network. (Whitepaper)
Doctoral Dissertation “The Role of Telemedicine in Improving Access to Urgent Mental Health Consults in Rural Hospital Emergency Departments” Southard, E.P., Neufeld, J., & Laws, S. (2013). Telementalhealth evaluations enhance access and efficiency in a critical access hospital emergency department. Journal of Telemedicine and e-Health
Southard, E.P. & Sacopulos, M. (2013, January/February) Medication mistakes may lead to malpractice. NurseWorks Magazine,17(1) Retrieved from https://nurseworksmagazine.com/webmag/welcome.php
Southard, E.P. & Sacopulos, M. (2013, March/April) Mandatory overtime and fiving proper care. NurseWorks Magazine,19 (2) Retrieved from https://nurseworksmagazine.com/webmag/welcome.php
Southard, E.P. & Sacopulos, M. (2013, May/June) Patients as FaceBook friends. NurseWorks Magazine,17 (3) Retrieved from https://nurseworksmagazine.com/webmag/welcome.php
Southard, E.P. & Sacopulos, M. (2013, July/August) Nurse supervisor gets legal advice on dealing with thieving nurses. NurseWorks Magazine,18(4) Retrieved from https://nurseworksmagazine.com/webmag/welcome.php
Southard, E.P. & Sacopulos, M. (2013, September/October)When angry doctors complicate patient care. NurseWorks Magazine,20 (5) Retrieved from https://nurseworksmagazine.com/webmag/welcome.php
Provider of care at St. Ann Clinic Organize fund raising events for American Diabetic Association’s Tour de Cure 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007, Member of Union Hospital Diabetic Education Center Advisory Board Member of Health Care Excel’s Physician Practice Quality Initiative Advisory Committee Vice-Chairman Indiana Telehealth Advisory Consortium 2006, 2007, 2008, 2014, 2015 Charter Member of Guys Who Give (Wabash Valley Community Foundation)
Indiana Rural Health Association Conference on Telemedicine June , 2004 2004 Indiana Primary Health Care Association Conference on Chronic Disease Management National Rural Health Association Annual Conference June, 2005 “Chronic Disease Management and Electronic Medical Records” Sigma Theta Tau Research Conference Fall, 2005 “ Chronic Disease Management in Indigent Populations” Indiana Rural Health Association Annual Conference June 2006 “Chronic Disease Management” March 2006 Testified to Indiana State Medicaid Office at Telemedicine Hearing Illinois Rural Health Association Conference 2006 “Chronic Disease Management and Implementation of Electronic Medical Records in Primary Care” November 2006 IRHA Critical Access Hospital Forum on “Selecting an Electronic Medical Record” November 2006, Northern Indiana Education Foundation on Chronic Disease Management and Electronic Medical Record Utilization” Indiana Primary Health Care Association Spring 2007” Chronic Disease Management and Electronic Medical Record Utilization” IRHA Conference January 2007 “The Future of Healthcare Delivery: Telemedicine” American Heart Association Conference April 2007 “Telemedicine and Neurology: What Does the Future Hold?”Office of Community and Rural Affairs Broadband Conference July 2007 “Telemedicine: Past and Present” National Rural Health Association Annual Conference May, 2008 “Evidence Based Tx. of Asthma” Emergency Nurses Association Annual Conference October, 2009 NRHA Annual Conference May, 2010 “The Role of Telemedicine in Improving Access to Urgent Mental Health Consults in Rural Hospital Emergency Departments” National Rural Health Association Annual Conference May, 2010 “Rural Telecardiology: Utilization, Stratification, and Cost Savings” Indiana Rural Health Association Annual Conference June, 2010 “Rural Telecardiology: Utilization, Stratification, and Cost Savings” Indiana Rural Health Association Annual Conference June, 2012 “Patient-Centered Medical Home, What Do They Think We Have Been Doing All These Years?” National Rural Health Association Annual Conference May, 2013 “Patients perceptions of electronic medical records” (Accepted Presentations) American Association of Colleges of Nursing Doctoral Education Conference, January 2014 “Implementing Interprofessional DNP Education: The Future of Nursing is Here” Union Hospital Continuing Medical Education Conference, May, 2014,”More Regulations! A look at case law, pitfalls and snags associated with DOT physicals” Indiana Rural Health Association Annual Conference June 2014, “Our Smallest Emergencies: Training Rural Providers to Save Babies Through High Fidelity Simulation” American Association of Nurse Practitioners Annual Conference June 2014, “More Regulations! A look at case law, pitfalls and snags associated with DOT physicals”