Dr. John Erickson was raised in El Paso, Texas. His father was an officer in the US Army, and the Erickson family settled in El Paso after his father retired from the military. As a youth, Dr. Erickson developed a love of the outdoors, was active in Boy Scouts, and earned the Eagle Scout Award. He went to medical school at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. He completed his orthopedic surgery residency at the University of Michigan, where he met his wife, Kimberly. He has been with the Raleigh Hand to Shoulder Center since he finished his hand surgery fellowship at Vanderbilt University in 2010.
While he was deciding where to “hang his shingle” after training, Dr. Erickson was immediately interested in the Raleigh Hand practice. He was impressed with the camaraderie among the surgeons, the integration of hand therapy within the practice, and the friendliness of the staff members. He says, “Our practice is unique. We are a small family – an independent, very specialized group of doctors and therapists, who really care about delivering high quality care to our patients. This is a great place to work.”
Dr. Erickson is double board-certified by the American Board of Orthopedic Surgery in orthopedic surgery and hand surgery. He was president of the North Carolina Society for Surgery of the Hand in 2021. He also helps to organize weekly hand conferences at WakeMed hospital for orthopedic resident education.
Dr. Erickson’s approach to patient care is straightforward: he treats people as he would like to be treated. Similar to all the doctors in the Raleigh Hand practice, he begins with conservative treatment recommendations for most conditions.
Dr. Erickson is married to Dr. Kimberly Erickson, a pediatric surgeon at WakeMed Hospital in Raleigh. They have one teenage daughter and a rescue dog. The Ericksons are active members of Christ Church in downtown Raleigh. He has participated in volunteer mission trips in medical school and in private practice. He enjoys spending time with his family, traveling, hiking, and being outdoors. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Erickson began painting landscape art, and he has turned this into a rewarding hobby. His art can be found at Art Source Fine Art in Raleigh.
