Erica Witkamp

Dr. Erica Witkamp is a Lecturer in Care for Relatives at Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences, where she has worked since 2019. She is affiliated with the Nursing program through the Care for Relatives research group, which is part of the Healthcare Innovation Knowledge Center. Dr. Witkamp holds a PhD from Erasmus MC, which she received in April 2015 for her research on palliative and terminal care in hospitals.

Her research focuses on supporting relatives of patients, particularly in palliative and end-of-life care contexts. Key areas include informal caregiving, digital legacy, self-management support, and the impact of healthcare on caregivers. Her work addresses how healthcare professionals can better support loved ones who care for patients with chronic or serious conditions, and how optimal collaboration between professionals and caregivers can be achieved.

Dr. Witkamp's publications reveal trends in palliative care research, with increasing attention to pandemic impacts on end-of-life care, digital legacy considerations, and structured support for informal caregivers. Her work spans multiple healthcare settings including hospitals, intensive care units, and home care environments.

• Teacher Researcher of the Year 2019

Dr. Witkamp has developed and implemented various educational resources, including a textbook on self-management support for nursing students. She has been instrumental in establishing quality frameworks for research skills education. Her research projects involve collaborations with numerous healthcare institutions including Erasmus MC, Regional Consortium for Palliative Care South-West Netherlands, Amsterdam UMC, and international partners like Cambridge University.

Her work extends to public engagement through initiatives like 'The Dead Corner' at the Lowlands music festival, which addresses societal attitudes toward death, and public lectures on caring for relatives. She leads multiple research projects focused on supporting informal caregivers across different healthcare contexts.