Michelle Rickard has been caring for children with critical and life-threatening illness for over twenty-five years, initially practicing as a registered nurse in the NICU and Bone Marrow Transplant Unit and most recently, as a nurse practitioner with the Hospitalist Service at Le Bonheur Children's Hospital.  These experiences have led to a passion for the integration of palliative care principles into the care of children and their families.  She has served on both local and national committees and presented at national conferences in an effort to make others aware of the importance of this vital service for our patients. She has also developed and taught numerous courses on palliative and end of life care, becoming an ELNEC trainer in 2005.  Dr. Rickard obtained her certification as a Pediatric Acute Care Nurse Practitioner in 2014 and completed the Doctorate of Nursing Practice degree from the University of South Alabama in 2015. She is an Assistant Professor and Option Coordinator for the Pediatric Acute Care Nurse Practitioner program at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, College of Nursing and works with the Hospitalist Team at Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital.