I grew up in a small town and to come to the world-famous Mayo Clinic was a big deal. My family was very proud of me. It is great to know that I am contributing to Mayo Clinic's mission of helping people.

I help researchers design studies and analyze data from the studies. I like looking at numbers. There is some creativity in terms of analyzing data in different ways. I get to determine how we are going to analyze the data, how it will be presented and what kind of graphs and plots are going to tell the true story of the research findings. I like working with the doctors; they are intelligent and interesting people. It is also exciting to know that I am advancing medical knowledge and helping improve the quality of care with my work.

You have to be organized to get through the day. The longer you are here, the more studies you will be working on simultaneously. It is helpful to be skeptical. Part of the process is to ask questions such as, "What is real?" and "What is the truth?" I like working with the scientific method -- making observations and asking what the scientific pattern is. You have to be able to understand numbers ... an analytical mind is very important.

My wife and I just had a baby and there were some complications with the pregnancy. It was pretty scary, but being at Mayo made us feel better. We trust the doctors, nurses and staff ... they do tremendous work here!