Professional background
I am from Aurelia, (northwest) IA. Currently, I work at Des Moines Orthopaedic Surgeons and have been there since 2001.
Favorite part of my job
As a member of an orthopedic practice group, I handle most of the foot surgeries that come through our practice. I do all of the standard podiatric procedures, as well as some rear foot surgery. I’ve actually achieved one of my goals by being employed at the practice that I am with now. I would like to practice there as long as I can. Otherwise, I want to continue to work on increasing my skills. The technology for foot surgery has increased dramatically in the past 5-10 years, and it’s a challenge to keep up with all of the new things that are happening in the profession.
Best memory of Des Moines
As an Iowa native, one of my favorite memories was the Des Moines Grand Prix. Watching the races was always really fun. I also enjoyed going to Zimm’s on the weekends with my classmates.
Why I stay involved with DMU
I taught at DMU as an assistant professor for two and a half years alongside doctors Yoho, Smith, and Bennett. I greatly enjoyed my time at DMU – both as a student and an assistant professor.
Advice to those graduating or just beginning residencies
Make sure to pay attention to your debt, both while you’re in school and after you graduate. It can easily get out of hand if you are not careful.
What was the most challenging aspect of your job or residency?
When I first started out, podiatrists weren’t allowed to work in every hospital so it could be a real challenge to work in certain ones. Also, back when I got started, the residency programs were highly varied – both in terms of length, which ranged from 1-3 years, and scope, due to some programs being surgical, while others were not. This made it difficult for other medical professionals to know exactly what training we had. However, over the past 10 years, things have been great for podiatrists as we’ve gained parity with other physicians. I think this can be attributed to the improved quality of podiatric education and the standardization of residency training programs.
Hobbies
Currently, most of my time outside of work revolves around my kids and their activities. Besides occasionally golfing, I coach little league softball and baseball.
