Her Story
About Maria
I have been working as a Cath Lab Electrophysiology Tech for 11 years at Bartow Regional Medical Center. My journey into this field began with a dream of becoming a doctor, but I realized I wanted a career that would allow me to have time for the things most important to me - forming a family in the future, spending time with friends and loved ones, and being active in my ministry at church. When I came across this program, it aligned perfectly with what I was looking for in life, and it has been a wonderful experience for the last 11 years. Every morning, I make sure the rooms are stocked and ready for any emergency cases, whether it's a patient having a heart attack or needing temporary pacemakers. Throughout the day, I scrub procedures including cardiac caths, temporary pacemakers, pacemakers, defibrillators, and interventional radiology procedures for other parts of the body. I'm always prepared to respond to emergencies at any point during the day. The biggest challenge in my field is not being able to do all that we believe we can throughout a procedure, knowing that the body is slowly giving up. Knowledge alone is not the only thing we can count on - we also have to rely on what the patient's body is capable of tolerating. There's only so much we can do with the knowledge that we have. Personally speaking, I'm a firm believer that when science ends, miracles begin.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Maria
01What do you attribute your success to?
Honestly, I will have to say that it's all the people who have been there before me - the people who have provided the patients to train me. Definitely a lot of prayers of many, many people who have been supporting me and being there to make sure that I am okay, physically, mentally, and emotionally. Definitely a great deal of faith - to believe that everything will be well in due time. You have to have a good head on your shoulders to believe in, first, the kind of work that you do, then definitely that God will have everything under control, and then in yourself.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
There's too many to count, but one of them has been: don't overthink the little things.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
First of all, be mindful of the field that she's going to enter. If she truly loves it, go for it. And third of all, always remember that the person that they have on a table is basically the image of Christ. So, always remember that we have to treat them with kindness, with respect, with dignity. And the rest follows.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
It's not being able to do all throughout the procedure what we believe we can, knowing that the body is slowly giving up. Knowledge alone is not the only thing that we can count on. We also have to rely on what the patient's body is capable of tolerating. And there's so much what we can do with the knowledge that we have. Personally speaking, I'm a firm believer that when science ends, miracles begin.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
Definitely consistency is one of the things that I value very greatly, especially in a field that not a whole lot of things are consistent. It depends on how we operate on our day-to-day lives, but consistency and clear communication is definitely something we have to have. And on the final four that we do, we have to be great team players. If we're there for each other, we can definitely work together. Those are some of the most key components that I think I would attribute to a good, successful work environment.
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