Hello! Dora here, and I would like to tell you all about my new and exciting career in the Operating Room. First, I should let you know how this all came about. The long road to nursing began back in 1979 when I finished up my Associates of Arts degree in Secretarial Science with a certificate in Medical Transcription. I held several medical transcription positions while we lived in Riverside, CA., which lead to supervisory and managerial roles in the field. While in California from 1983 to 1988, I landed the position of office manager for Dictation West Medical Transcription Services and was in charge of the medical transcription department for Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Hollywood. What a rush! Life in the fast lane--I only wish Mark could have been with me that year, but we was freezing his tootsies off in Iceland.

After returning from a short stay in England courtesy of the Air Force, I again returned to the medical transcription field in San Antonio, TX. In 1991 I was hired to manage the Medical Transcription Department for Wilford Hall Medical Center, the largest Air Force hospital in the U.S. This was very challenging and quite a feather in my hat. During this time period I started to look to the future and wondered what my next adventure would be, since I could not go any higher in the medical transcription arena. With a B.S. in Health Care Management almost completed, I decided to delve even deeper into the medical field by enrolling in nursing school. I surmised that with a B.S. in Health Care Management and a B.S. in Nursing, I should be a pretty good candidate for Hospital administration positions or even Nurse Management positions.

The transition from high-powered manager to nursing student at age 32 was quite a shock, but I was up to the challenge and graduated with honors. During this time I already knew that I wanted to specialize in Surgery and was anxious to begin. Since it is difficulty for new grads to get hired right into specialized fields such as surgery, ER, or intensive care, I selected a position which would be in line with my goals and went to work on a 50-bed orthopedic floor at Methodist Hospital in San Antonio.

After completing my one-year experience of floor nursing, I relocated to Illinois, land of snow, to join Mark who was already in school at WIU. I was hired for one of the two vacancies at the 130-bed hospital here in Macomb and went to work on the surgical floor. Within 6 months, there was an opening in the Surgery Department and I quickly applied. So, there you have it--the long and winding road that led me to the operating room. Would you like to see what I look like in scrubs? Here are two new pictures: Photo #1 and Photo #2. I have assisted in all kinds of surgeries from tonsillectomies and hernia repairs to Cesarean sections. There is a lot to learn and many new challenges in this avenue of nursing, but I look forward to be an "old O.R. nurse", Director of Surgical Services, or even a Nursing Instructor someday. Stay tuned for the continuing saga..................

July 1998: The saga continues! When we relocated to California, I obtained a position in an outpatient surgery clinic in Walnut Creek, only miles from our home in Concord. Quite a different experience compared to a hospital surgery center. Our clinic performs "easy" types of surgeries, the kind requiring no overnight stays for patients. In the last month, I've seen liposuctions, tummy tucks, intestinal procedures, simple orthopedic cases, and a variety of other procedures. I've observed boobs get smaller and larger… I'm staying "abreast" of all the current procedures! ..................

The saga continues! ..................