by Emma Dugas | Feb 1, 2022
By Emma Dugas, Vitals contributor The COVID-19 pandemic led many people to postpone routine visits to their primary care provider in 2020. The result: missed physicals and cancer screenings, less chronic disease monitoring and medication adjustment, and overdue...
by Emma Dugas | Dec 8, 2021
Cynthia Mendoza is comfortable with contradictions. The 40-year-old mother of three is shy with strangers but bold with family, friends and co-workers. Equal parts loyal and restless, she says being a medical assistant is the perfect job. No two days have been the...
by Emma Dugas | Dec 2, 2021
Sarah Heyl has been walking a proverbial tightrope since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Heyl was three months pregnant with her first child when the new coronavirus was first making headlines. She spent her second and third trimester in a tight bubble to avoid catching...
by Emma Dugas | Nov 1, 2021
Dr. Kimberly Moore Dalal was a 37-year-old active duty officer when she was deployed to Afghanistan in 2006. Already a highly trained surgeon, the United States Air Force said they needed Dr. Dalal near the frontline. She would care for American soldiers and coalition...
by Emma Dugas | Oct 18, 2021
Valerie LaBonte spent the better part of her adult life focused on giving people second chances. Now, at 65 years old, she has received her own second chance—through a program that has helped her break her dependency on addictive pain relievers. Many in Lake County...
