While many students had their first day of school yesterday, one Saint Mary’s nurse anesthesiology student — Laura Knutsen — started her first day very differently.
Knutsen was one of five people struck by a vehicle Sunday night at a restaurant in Saint Louis Park. Knutsen was at the restaurant with her coworkers celebrating her last shift as a staff Registered Intensive Care Unit (ICU) Nurse at Methodist Hospital. Two of the individuals struck by the vehicle were killed and three others including Knutsen were critically injured. Knutsen suffered multiple serious injuries and remains hospitalized. The driver of the vehicle has been charged with 11 criminal counts.
Students in the DNP program visited Knutsen in the hospital on Tuesday. While Knutsen missed the first day of class, she took a photo while holding a picture of her classmates on their first day and a sign that read “First Day of CRNA School, 18th Grade, 9-3-24.”
“Laura has made it very clear to all of us that she is going to fight to be here with us at Saint Mary’s, and the DNP program is always here for someone who is ready to beat the odds,” said Dr. Leah Gordon, DNP, APRN, CRNA, director of the program.
Fundraisers have been set up for all of the victims. The links to those accounts can be found on the Kare 11 website.
