As a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA), I have the distinct honor and privilege of providing anesthesia care to our surgical patients in a variety of anesthetizing venues across the VUMC enterprise.
A transplant from Louisiana, I have spent the last 17 years of my career here at Vanderbilt. I always desired the opportunity to help others and found my calling in the medical profession after serving 10 years in the IT industry. From a nurse extern to RN, I started my medical career in the Trauma ICU loving every ounce of the adrenaline rush that comes with that patient population. The teamwork and camaraderie are addictive. But my ultimate career path was a desire to enter the world of anesthesia. After completing my training in anesthesia as a CRNA, I remained here to serve our middle Tennessee and surrounding communities. The teamwork of our Vanderbilt CRNA team is second to none and I am proud to stand side-by-side with them daily. The compassion and professionalism of our CRNA team for the patients we care for daily in the ORs drives me to be my best regarding patient care. Each patient’s DNA is different and that brings about a new challenge with each case we manage which mandates CRNAs be at the top of our game with every new case. These daily new challenges are a driving force in my desire to be the best anesthesia provider for our VUMC patients. From routine colonoscopies to multi-comorbidity diagnosed, complex patient cases, my colleagues and I are here to serve and provide safe anesthesia care to our VUMC patients.
My career path recently has provided the privilege of being selected to serve our CRNA team as the CRNA Manager of Education. This leadership role in addition to my clinical responsibilities bears the responsibility of ensuring our team is up to speed on the latest research and education for optimal clinical care. In addition to this role, I have also been elected by my state CRNA peers as the President-elect of the Tennessee Association of Nurse Anesthetist (TANA) assuming the President role in October 2021. I have a strong passion for our profession and the value of care we provide to our patient population here in the Nashville community and statewide. I welcome this new challenge of leading our state CRNA colleagues this next year.
In my time away from VUMC, I enjoy spending time with my wife and two girls, traveling (especially to St Thomas, USVI), watching sporting events (huge LSU fan, Brave’s fan and anything related to football) and being outdoors as much as possible.