Why I chose to pursue a career in healthcare:

Medicine is ever-changing, which keeps working in the field new and exciting. My career path in health care began as a CNA in a nursing home, where I learned the importance of quality care and found myself wanting to learn more about the body, diseases, and treatments. My path to becoming a Nurse Practitioner was definitely not a straight line, but as I progressed through furthering my nursing education as a RN, I found myself wanting to expand my knowledge base and experience to be able to provide the best care to my patients.

What I want my patients to know about me:

My years of experience as a RN in a variety of community nursing settings has provided me the opportunity to learn, listen to, and understand patients. Working as a nurse in hospice and palliative medicine for the past decade has allowed me to highlight compassion and has taught me the importance of communication, education, and working as a team while acknowledging the effects of the mind, body, and spirit and understanding there is no one definition for "quality of life". As a Nurse Practitioner, my goal is to provide compassionate, patient-centered care knowing that patients are more than a diagnosis.

What I do when I'm not seeing patients:

I enjoy spending time with my husband, visiting with my 3 adult children and grandchildren, and relaxing with our Doberman, who enjoys a lot of attention. Cruising and traveling, especially to sunny, warm destinations, are my favorite ways to vacation. At home, I like cooking and trying new recipes, home improvement projects, watching true crime stories and spending time outdoors planting and landscaping.