Dr. Ashley Bjorklund named Medical Director of Pediatric Critical Care at HCMC

Dr. Ashley Bjorklund was recently named Medical Director of Pediatric Critical Care at HCMC, Hennepin Healthcare’s flagship hospital and Pediatric Level I Trauma Center located in downtown Minneapolis.

Dr. Bjorklund graduated from Rush Medical College, earning Clinical Excellence and Alpha Omega Alpha awards as a student. She completed her Medicine and Pediatrics Residency at the University of Minnesota (UMN), and then served as a Medical Officer in the US Navy at Naval Hospital Camp Lejeune from 2011-13 before returning the UMN for a fellowship in Pediatric Critical Care, where she received the UMN Outstanding Fellow Teacher Award all three years of her fellowship.

In 2016, Dr. Bjorklund returned to active duty military service at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WRNMMC), where she was promoted to Lieutenant Commander and served as Medical Director of their Pediatric ICU. After her military service, Dr. Bjorklund returned to Minnesota to join Hennepin Healthcare’s Department of Pediatrics.

“We are so fortunate to have Dr. Bjorklund leading our Pediatric Critical Care services,” said Dr. Diana Cutts, Chief of Pediatrics at Hennepin Healthcare. “Her remarkable accomplishments and background exemplifies a commitment to caring for children and finding innovative ways to improve that care.”

In addition to her clinical care responsibilities at Hennepin Healthcare, Dr. Bjorklund provides pediatric critical care coverage at Masonic Children’s Hospital, is a member of the Global Pediatrics faculty, and is the UMN Pediatric Critical Care Fellowship Program Director. Her special interests include pediatric critical care in resource-limited settings, care of refugee and immigrant children, utilization of point-of-care ultrasound, medical education and simulation.

For more than 127 years, HCMC has successfully taken care of critically ill and injured children. That experience makes a huge difference when a child’s life is at risk. HCMC is a Level I Pediatric Trauma Center with the right people and equipment in place, ready to care for critically injured children from the time of injury through rehabilitation. For more information about pediatric trauma and critical care services at HCMC, go to www.hennepinhealthcare.org/picu.