Erica Richards, MSN, PMHNP-BC

Erica Richards is a Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner at Boston Child Study Center – Maine. Erica is a graduate of the University of Maine with a BS in Zoology, 2003. She later earned her Bachelor’s and Master’s in Nursing from the Medical University of South Carolina. After working many years as a Certified Nurse Midwife, she obtained certification as a Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner.

Erica began practicing in South Carolina with underserved and high risk adolescents in school based health clinics. After returning to Maine, she taught at the University of Southern Maine as adjunct faculty before providing midwifery care at community hospitals in Portland and most recently in Lewiston. While providing comprehensive women’s health care it became apparent that mental health concerns could be addressed more holistically. In this role, Erica sought continuing education experiences related to the mental health of women and their families. Though these opportunities Erica recognized her passion for addressing mental health more completely and sought her psychiatric-mental health certification. During her training, Erica has worked with children and adolescents in both inpatient and outpatient settings. She believes strongly in the power of exercise, connection, meditation, and healthy diet to improve mental health, while also having expertise in medication management.

Erica has special interests in attention deficient hyperactivity disorder, trauma, and learning differences. She works to raise awareness of the mental health implications of the experiences associated with these diagnoses. Erica is pursuing her PhD in Nursing while continuing to work with Master’s of Science in Nursing students to assist in the advancement of their careers. She holds a courtesy appointment at Yale University School of Nursing and is a member of Sigma Theta Tau, the Nursing Honor’s Society.