Perspectives Winter/Spring 2019

28 | DR. PALLAVI PATEL COLLEGE OF HEALTH CARE SCIENCES ALUMNI PERSPECTIVES ALUMNI Perspectives All-Star PAs How Professional Athletes Enrich the Physician Assistant Profession BY JANET SPARKER, ED.D., PA-C Earlier in her career, Elizabeth Mulvey played the role of Alice in Wonderland in the show Mystery , performing in Austria, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, and Switzerland. The NSU Fort Myers Physician Assistant (PA) Program has been fortunate to matriculate profes- sional athletes who cultivated skills over many years that undoubtedly contributed to their success as students. Below are the stories of two people of whom we are proud—one who has graduated, and one who is in his clinical year. Class of 2018 alumna Elizabeth Mulvey , M.P.H., M.M.S., PA-C, is an excellent example of how growing up as an athlete contributed to her success as a PA student. Both her career as a professional figure skater on a cruise ship and her subsequent science studies required sacrifice, dedication, and courage. “Life as a figure skater was not always easy; there were times I slipped and fell in front of thousands of people, but I always got up and finished my routine,” she said. “The number of hours I spent perfecting my skills as an amateur figure skater in order to turn professional paralleled the amount of time I spent studying as an undergraduate student, and then again as a physician assistant student.” Mulvey’s skating experiences cultivated the self- confidence she needed to pursue medicine despite her lack of a science background. Her determination only intensified after failing her first science test, reminding her of her reaction after falling on the ice. As a result, she characteristically advanced to tutoring students and graduating with high honors. Not surprisingly, she shone in both didactic and clinical studies in the Fort Myers PA Program. Mulvey’s commitment to excellence in all endeavors also impressed her preceptor, otorhinolaryngologist Mark Montgomery, M.D., who recently welcomed Mulvey as a second certified physician assistant in his Bonita Springs, Florida, practice.