Phyllis Wood, DNP, APRN, FNP-BC, earned her BSN from Baylor University School of Nursing, Dallas, Texas in 1999. Afterwards, Phyllis worked as a Med-Surg Nurse for Plaza Medical Center (now called Medical City Fort Worth) in Fort Worth, Texas from 1999-2001.  She then worked as a School Nurse for the Fort Worth Independent School District from 2001-2004.  Phyllis then worked as a Psychiatric Nurse in the Psychiatric Emergency Department at Tarrant County John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth, Texas while earning her MSN at Baylor University Louise Herrington School of Nursing in Dallas, Texas from January 2004-May 2006.  Subsequently, after earning her MSN, she became Board Certified by the ANCC as a Family Nurse Practitioner.  As a Family Nurse Practitioner, Phyllis worked in the John Peter Smith Hospital School Based Clinics, Urgent Care, the Emergency Department, the Pulmonary Clinic, and most recently in an Internal Medicine Clinic where she was the primary care provider for many patients.  Although an Internal Medicine Clinic, she evaluated newborn babies, children, adolescents, adults and geriatric patients.  She performed newborn exams, school/sports physicals, well woman exams, well male exams, Medicare wellness exams, chronic disease exams, and episodic exams of all kinds. Phyllis also continued to work part-time in the Urgent Care Clinic at John Peter Smith Hospital.  Phyllis earned her DNP in 2010 at Concordia University Wisconsin.  in addition to her clinical obligations, in 2011 she entered into academia part-time in the Graduate Department at the University of Texas at Arlington.  Phyllis taught didactic and clinical courses as an Assistant Clinical Professor. Phyllis recently moved from Fort Worth, Texas to the Houston, Texas area and is employed full-time in the Graduate Studies Department at the University of Texas at Houston, Cizik School of Nursing. She has published opinion pieces in the past and looks forward to applying research for publication.  Phyllis also looks forward to scholarship endeavors to improve optimal outcomes for marginalized populations.