More about me

I was born in Key West, Florida where my father was stationed during the Vietnam War. At the completion of his tour of duty we returned to Flagstaff, Arizona where my sister was born. After my parents graduated from Northern Arizona University my father accepted employment with the Boeing company and moved my family to Kent, Washington where I spent the majority of my formative years.

Beginning in early childhood my dream of becoming a doctor persisted into high school. I volunteered weekly at the local hospital emergency department and during the summer at Muscular Dystrophy Association camp. I also took as much high school science as I could and thoroughly enjoyed advanced biology where we dissected different animals and learned about their organ systems. Through my semester research project on hermaphroditism I learned about sex differentiation, genetic anomalies and medical intervention.

In 1994 I left to serve a two-year LDS mission in Colombia, South America. Though I am no longer affiliated with the Mormon religion, the mission opened my eyes in ways that I never could have imagined. Observing poverty and inequality in Colombia awakened me to the plight of ordinary people, fueled my desire to ease their pain and further inspired toward a medical career.

After returning from my mission I began classes at the University of Washington almost immediately. The culture shock I experienced there was much greater than what I had felt upon my arrival in Colombia. The classes were large and the professors distant. Three years had passed since I had interrupted my studies, I was struggling to think and speak in English and I did not know how to utilize email or the internet. For the first few quarters I received less-than-stellar grades and seriously thought I was going to drown. The pre-med orientation I attended was equally depressing and discouraging. Given my position at that time I could not see how I could possibly be competitive for medical school. With a heavy heart I abandoned my dream and tried to envision a different future. Following my father’s steps into engineering was an easy solution. I also married and became a father with the birth of my son.

After graduation I accepted employment at Evans & Sutherland (E&S), a leader in simulation software and display systems, and moved my family to Salt Lake City to design high-tech H-60 helicopter and S-3B jet simulators for the US Navy. Given the small size of our mechanical engineering team, I participated in just about every aspect of the design process: initial concept brainstorming, detailed design, construction and manipulation of solid models and assemblies, computational and finite element analysis, documentation, manufacturing, quality control and onsite retrofitting and installation. In addition to gaining proficiency in the design process, I became a father once again with the birth of my beautiful daughter.

Unfortunately, happy times were not to last. After three years of marriage I was coming to term with the fact that being married to a woman was not a healthy situation for me mentally or emotionally. I did not want to leave my wife or my kids but I felt like I was dying inside. When the facade came crashing down I passed through a very dark and painful time. Nevertheless I worked very hard to proceed with good ethics and honesty and we parted ways in divorce.

My feelings about engineering were changing as well. Initially I had enjoyed my job as it allowed me to combine creativity with technical knowledge to find innovative solutions. After a while however I began to feel in a rut. More importantly I was quickly discovering that while I found engineering mentally stimulating it was doing nothing for my soul.

My dilemma was to be solved much faster than I expected. E&S had been struggling for awhile to secure additional contracts so when the lay-off came I was not surprised. What did surprise me was the sense of relief and freedom I felt afterward. I had been ready for change and looked forward to what the future would bring. Only one week later however I watched in shock as the World Trade Center towers exploded and crumbled over and over again on the continuous news coverage. As if rippling away from the epicenter economic devastation quickly engulfed the nation. Soon many more white-collar workers were joining me in the unemployment line and competition in the job market grew fierce. I was fortunate to find temporary employment with Autoliv where I assisted in the design of automotive safety airbags, but this job dried up also after only a few short months. As weeks of fruitless job search dragged into months, my financial situation became quite desperate. As if coming out as a gay father in a conservative community and still licking my wounds from a painful divorce weren't stressful enough, I also found myself unemployed, bankrupt and a homeless couch surfer. I was an emotional wreck. Fortunately my friends were there to support and help me recollect myself so that I could begin a new life.

During the months that followed I searched deep within myself to discover who I was and what I needed to do. I felt fortunate that I could even reflect on the possibilities. The only thing keeping me off the streets was the kindness and generosity of a true friend. My privations were humbling and difficult, but they also helped me in a very real way to de-clutter my life and to discover what was truly important.

To consider medical school again was not easy. In fact I considered just about everything else first. I felt intimidated by the thought of trying to accomplish what I had previously abandoned. As I squatted in dust could I really reach for the stars and succeed? Deep-down inside I knew that I had given up too easily before. I also knew that if I did not take advantage of my present situation to try again I would regret it for the rest of my life. After much consideration and serious reflection I could deny my calling no longer. With new resolve I accepted full-time employment as an entry level inpatient phlebotomist, enrolled at the University of Utah to complete prerequisites and volunteered at the Utah AIDS Foundation as an HIV/STI testing counselor and at the University of Utah hospital as a Spanish medical interpreter.

My personal life continued to improve as well. Gradually I rediscovered self-respect and developed confidence in being my authentic self. Finally I met my partner, Patrick, in 2002 and we have been together ever since. He is my partner in every sense of the word. While we were finally able to "domesticate" each other on February 4, 2008 -- the first day Oregon's Domestic Partnership Law went into affect -- we look forward to the day when we will be able to enjoy the rights and benefits that marriage has to offer. We love spending time with our kids, JD and Kayla, whenever they visit and we communicate with them frequently while they are with their mom. Finally, our adorable beagles, Zack and Copper, complete our family.

Eventually my hard work paid off and I was accepted to medical school at Oregon Health & Science University. In addition to my coursework, rotations and other responsibilities I also found time to serve in various leadership roles and participate in research. Offices held include co-chair of LGBT People in Medicine, co-chair of the Internal Medicine Interest Group, student leader of Principles of Clinical Medicine Health Policy Sessions and founding committee member of the Coalition for Health and Affirmation of Sexual Minorities (CHASM). My fluency in Spanish permitted me to pass OHSU interpreter examinations, volunteer at the pediatric health fair "Fiesta de Salud Portland Niños" and travel between several cities to interpret for the NIH HEALTHY Study targeting 6th graders for diabetes prevention. I also presented two original research studies in 2008; Recruiting and Retaining Physicians in Coos Bay was presented at the regional Oregon Rural Health Conference and OB/GYN Sensitivity to LGBT Patient Needs was presented at the national conference of the Gay and Lesbian Medical Association (GLMA).

Given my attention to detail, ability to think in 3D and desire to work with my hands, I felt a natural affinity with surgery. On the other hand, I appreciated the continuity of primary care. Excited to discover the right specialty for me, I enjoyed exploring my options as I rotated through the third year clerkships. While multiple specialties indeed piqued my interest, OB/GYN captivated it. Working on the labor and delivery floor was amazing. I enjoyed witnessing the miracle of birth and participating in the complexities of its management. In the clinic I observed caring interactions between providers and their patients and a continuity of care with women both young and old. I was also pleasantly surprised at the abundance of opportunities within OB/GYN to work with the underserved, another passion of mine.

For me, OB/GYN is an exciting field of medicine that offers an unrivaled combination of primary care, social justice, medical management and technical skill. Additionally it allows me to keep one foot in continuity clinic and the other in the operating room. More importantly, both as a friend and family member of many women and a strong supporter of women's issues in general, I am honored to be gaining expertise in the management of their healthcare.

While I am obviously focused on women's health during my residency training at the University of Minnesota, I do not plan to be a general OB/GYN. My professional interests include issues pertaining to the LGBTQI (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender/transsexual, queer/questioning, intersex) communities, Mayer-Rokitansky-Kuster-Hauser syndrome and polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). As a future gender specialist I intend to provide comprehensive medical and surgical care for patients of the entire gender spectrum in need of such services.