In 1951 I was off to college at the University of Iowa. By my junior year I had decided to enter the medical field. I thought I might take up nursing, but the sight of blood made me faint. Since my mother always talked about eating a carrot for its vitamin A and orange juice for its C, I decided learning about what we put into our bodies might be interesting. In 1955 I graduated with a major in foods and nutrition. Since as a teenager I had the desire to help people, I decided to take a fifth year in a dietetic internship to work in hospitals to serve sick people and help them get well. Following is a résumé of my journeys:
1955-1956 – Completed dietetic internship at the University of Oregon Medical School in Portland
1956–1964 – As a hospital dietitian, I worked at the following hospitals:Iowa Methodist Hospital in Des Moines, Iowa; University of Chicago Clinics in Chicago; Wesley Memorial Hospital in Chicago – now a part of Northwestern University; Illinois State Pediatric Institute for medically challenged children; Lifetime member of the American Dietetic Association
Next week: My hospital experience
