 Melissa has been working with the Sanger Clinic since January 2004. In addition to providing care for patients with congenital heart disease, Melissa has been extensively involved in organizing support groups for families with children born with congenital heart disease. She has also helped organize and is a board member for The Joining Hearts Pediatric Cardiology Fund, a foundation that enhances educational opportunities for healthcare providers caring for children with congenital heart disease.
Education Summary
Melissa graduated from Mississippi State University in 1993 with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Biology Education. She then earned a bachelor of science in nursing from Union University in Jackson, Tennessee in 1998. A Master of Science degree in nursing was earned from the University of Alabama at Birmingham in 2000.
Professional Experience
Prior to joining the Sanger Clinic in January 2004, Melissa was a Nurse Practitioner in pediatrics in a private pediatric practice in Charlotte, North Carolina for 2 years. She served as a travel nurse for a pediatric intensive care unit in Charlotte for one year. Between 1998 and 2000 Melissa serviced as a staff nurse in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at the Children's Hospital of Alabama in Birmingham.
Academic Interests
- General Pediatric Cardiology
- Social support groups for families of children with congenital heart disease
- Lipid abnormalities and hypertension in pediatrics
- Outpatient clinics for patients with complex single ventricle anatomy
- Care of children with Trisomy 21 (Down Syndrome)
Research Participation
Turner-Henson, A. (Principle Investigator), Kohler, C.,
Grad, R., & Sathiakumar, N. Acute and Chronic Respiratory
Symptoms in Head Start Children. University of Alabama. Study
in progress.
Turner-Henson, A. (Principle Investigator), Kohler, C.,
Grad, R., Johnston, J., O'Brian, J., Roger, T., & Sathiakumar, N.
Reducing Environmental Tobacco Smoke in Pediatric Asthma.
University of Alabama at Birmingham. Study in progress.
Licensure/Certification
RN license in North Carolina, Certified Family Nurse Practitioner
(ANCC); CPR and PALS certified
Non-Medical Interests
|
