Tell us a little about yourself :

I grew up in Lake Charles. After high school, I traveled and went to college and graduate school in North Carolina. After getting married, we moved back to Lake Charles to start our family. 14 years later, we have 3 precious boys and love being back home.

Education:

• Saint Louis High School
• Belmont Abbey College, BA in Biology, Minor in Environmental Science
• Duke University, DPT
• Texas Woman’s University, MBA
• Academy of Lymphatic Studies, Certified Lymphedema Therapist (CLT)

How long have you been with PIPT?

I have been a PT at Partners since 2005.

What drew you to physical therapy?

I was headed for medical school, even taking the MCAT and completing the application process. However, sitting and reflecting one day, I realized that I really enjoyed problem solving related to the human body and physical therapy is a perfect career for that. It allows the provider to spend time with the patient and rely on critical thinking skills to determine cause and effect of the patient’s problems. This was very appealing to me.

What’s your favorite part of the job?

I have been able to branch outside of patient care and spend time working on advocacy for patients and providers. I have also worked hard to focus on factors that impact healthcare outcomes. This has been very inspiring for my life and I love the public health side of healthcare. Critical thinking on a whole different level.

What do you do for fun?

I enjoy volunteering, I currently volunteer as the Louisiana Payment and Practice Committee Chair for the Louisiana Physical Therapy Association, a member of the Department of Insurance Healthcare Commission, and as a Board Member of the Louisiana Physical Therapy Board.

Anything exciting on the horizon/ or just happened?

I am working on some specific initiates that focus on patient access to alternatives to opioids in a multidisciplinary model. Super excited about this project!