How many years have you been practicing and where did you graduate from?

Ten years. I graduated from PA school at Emory University in Atlanta, GA.

What do you enjoy most about serving Appalachian Mountain Health patients here in Western NC?

I very much enjoy having the support to help try and find creative solutions for folks who are having many complex and chronic medical and mental health issues and may not have been able to previously connect to care.

What is your approach to patient care?

I very much practice in a shared decision approach, weighed heavily toward harm reduction. I think especially when you’re doing outreach medicine, the problem focused approach that you would do in a traditional clinic setting isn’t necessarily helpful. Meeting the patient where they are and finding out what their urgent needs are in that moment may not necessarily be something that’s on our quality measures, preventative care checklist. So I remain focused on being mindful and being able to shift and adjust in the moment with each patient throughout each day.

What is one piece of health advice you find challenging to follow yourself?

Sometimes we leave ourselves last. I’m better than I used to be, and I feel like I am way better at not leaving myself last here at Appalachian Mountain Health than other community health centers what I have practiced. So I feel it’s all moving in a more positive direction of me engaging in my own personal self-care; I’m super excited about the work that we do! Having a shared mission, it’s hard, but we’re all a team.

What is your favorite local restaurant?

We go to Taco Billy in Asheville a lot. My kid loves their guacamole! I also really like White Labs Brewing; their pizza is incredible!

Do you have any special interests?

I love addiction medicine, and that’s usually what I find myself trying to boost my outside learning on. Then, I feel like by way of the job, if you’re trained in primary care you often end up doing a lot of psychopharmacotherapy. So, a lot of overlap with mental health diagnosis and treatment. I am always trying to boost my knowledge through certificate training or working on cases with my colleagues.

What languages are you fluent in?

English.