About Me

After serving in the U.S. Marine Corps out of high school, I returned to my home in Michigan where I have lived most of my life. I attended a local hospital-based RN diploma program and went on to work in several different institutions' critical care units.

After several years of working, I decided to return to school to complete my BSN. I graduated in 1999 from the University of Michigan with a BSN and then entered their MS in Anesthesia program. Citing the challenges of meeting my school and family obligations, I elected to resign on good terms in February of the first year. I then returned to my previous employer where I remain employed to this day. Though I have always enjoyed clinical nursing, I still had a desire to pursue further challenges.

When I heard of the increasingly popular Nursing Informatics (NI) field, I felt it was a good match for my aptitude and interests. I reviewed the available NI programs and found that the program at Duke was both small and highly regarded, thereby making it my first choice of programs. I was granted enrollment and began the program in January of 2004. A more detailed version of my resume is available upon request.

Over the last 3 years, I have learned much about myself and my profession, and feel that I am well prepared to enter the NI workforce when the right opportunity arises. I look forward to the challenges and opportunities a career in informatics will provide.

I have developed a strong entrepreneurial spirit, broad technical aptitude, and a thorough understanding of clinical nursing over the past 12 years. I am not afraid to take on unfamiliar tasks and am a fast learner. I possess a drive for success first felt as a Marine, and nurtured for all of my adult life. My primary areas of interest include the impact usability has on the successful adoption of new systems, the application of technology to address staffing, quality, and safety issues, and improvements possible through intelligent workflow redesign. I intend to gain skills related to Six Sigma in support of these interests. I also look forward to becoming more experienced with the business and legal dimensions of our health care system.