As the facilitator of this course I will take a moment and highlight my education first . I will work backwards and highlight the latest education. I admit I have been a man who just loves learning!

Professionally, I am an Emergency Medicine Physician Assistant, with special recognition in Surgery, with a Masters Degree from the University of Utah (2003).......GO UTES! And a Masters of Public Health from Independence University

I had been working on my PhD in Human Services with Capella University (I have completed all coursework, and am entering research phase (was studying pandemic influenza plans and rural health clinics), but took a hiatus due to the H1N1 flu that attacked me and changed my life and now I am considering changing programs to finish it. I also have a Post-Master's Graduate Certificate in Healthcare Administration from Capella U.

I have a Bachelor's Degree in Health Services Management, a Certificate in Paramedic from Mount San Antonio College (Walnut, Los Angeles County, Ca), and for my own professional interest (I coach and take care of high school and junior high sports teams) a Certificate in Sports Psychology.

Career-wise, I can say that my entire adult life since high school has been in the fast paced side of medicine. While still a teenager I was racing through the streets of Los Angeles as a Paramedic and once that career wound down I went back and became a physician assistant

The last decade and a half I have worked primarily as a Master's trained Emergency Room Physician Assistant and as a PA-C in rural medicine in Western Oklahoma, Texas, and in Arizona and also teaching in Health Sciences. I graduated over a decade ago from the University of Utah's excellent program, which was at the time ranked in the top 5 of all physician assistant programs in the United States (out of over a hundred and twenty schools).

I also have over 10 years of full-time teaching experience at the university level, teaching in the classroom, online teaching, and also hybrid teaching (a mix of online-and classroom). And have been the director of the Emergency Medical Services Program at an Arizona College.

If one were to truly ask me my area of "expertise" I would have to say it is in understanding people and the delivery of patient centered care. I love and enjoy learning, but for me, and I preface this humbly, by saying I did not get into medicine at such a young age because I "liked helping people" - I did like helping people, but I could have helped people in many capacities. For those in medicine this seems to be such a stock answer as if we in medicine are better than someone else because we are here in medicine. But, we're not better, we just have very prominent and important roes to play, that does sometimes put us on a pedestal and up on a stage, yet I believe with all my heart that nearly all of us "like helping people".

In many ways, I have always been called a "lifesaver" due to the nature of my work, but in truth, it's others that have saved mine, and made it fulfilling.