The path to a career in medicine was not direct for me. Although I had always been interested in the sciences, it was not until I served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Cote d’Ivoire, West Africa, after college that I seriously considered becoming a physician.  The tremendous need for health care providers there made a big impact on me.  Additionally, I had time to think about what I was good at, what I enjoyed doing and what was important to me. A career in medicine was the result of all that pondering.

I attended medical school at the University of Colorado in Denver. Family Medicine was a natural choice for me. Treating the whole person and the whole family just makes sense. Following medical school, I completed my Family Medicine Residency at Exempla-Saint Joseph hospital in Denver. During that time I cared for an underserved, largely Spanish speaking population.

After residency, my love of the Southwest (I am from a small town near the Four Corners), my interest in the public health sector, and my desire to eat my mother’s cooking lead me to a job on the Navajo Reservation in northwestern New Mexico. I did full-spectrum family medicine including obstetrics at Northern Navajo Medical Center for three years. It was truly an amazing experience. I saw lots of interesting pathology, learned a ton and was continually fascinated with the Navajo culture.

I moved to the Philadelphia area in June of 2006 after my husband was accepted to vet school at Penn. I had always been interested in a faculty position and my job with Crozer-Keystone has been a great fit. I have continued to do obstetrics and inpatient medicine. I have also helped to staff the Upper Darby office, which serves a large immigrant population. It has been really fun (and of course challenging) to see patients from all over the world. 

Certainly the most rewarding part of my experience here has been interacting with the residents. There is no such thing as an “average day” working with this bright, charismatic and fun group. I believe that teaching is a true art and have enjoyed the challenges and rewards it has presented so far. I have been lucky to have a solid group of faculty colleagues to learn from.