Dr.
Sister Rosanne Popp: Be
careful what you wish for.
Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word, Houston
 Already
a nurse, Dr. Sister Rosanne Popp had recently
completed her master's degree to become a nurse
practitioner. Yet she found herself frustrated
by the lack of opportunities for nurse practitioners
to work with the poor.
"Do
you want to become a doctor?" a hospital administrator
asked Sister Rosanne Popp during a conversation
in 1988. "I
don't know," she answered.
Becoming
a doctor was something she had never considered,
but with the idea planted, she could not go back.
Soon she committed herself to one year of pre-med,
four years of medical school and three years of
residency.
Today
she works at a family practice center in Southwest
Houston, caring for and educating the poor and
immigrant populations that visit the clinic. The
challenges are many, from the language and cultural
barriers of caring for patients from Central and
South America, the Mideast, Asia and West Africa,
to not having the resources to send patients to
cardiologists, gastroenterologists, or other specialists
that they need. But she enjoys the independence
and knowledge she's gained from becoming a doctor,
as well as the successes of the clinic, such as
the award-winning program started a year ago to
support and educate diabetic patients.
"No
matter who you are, volunteer," she offers to
people wanting to do something to help in their
own community. "There are so many places that
need your help. Don't sit at home. Instead of
thinking about yourself, do something for somebody
else. You're never too busy. It doesn't have to
be three times a week. It could just be once a
month. That's how to make you feel good about
yourself.
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