Completed Event: Gymnastics versus NCAA Championship Final on April 19, 2025 , , 4th of 4 (197.2375)
Final Score
Gymnastics
4th of 4 (197.2375)
vs NCAA Championship Final
Utah Gymnastics' Heroes In Health Care - Annabeth Eberle Dean
5/14/2020 11:37 AM | Gymnastics
Hear from former Red Rock and current physician's assistant.
One of Utah gymnastics' heroes in health care, Annabeth Eberle Dean shares her story about how she became interested in Orthopedic surgery and why it is so rewarding to help patients recover from injury, specifically foot or ankle injuries. She shares her advice on dealing with COVID-19 in our daily lives, how Utah's medical programs set her up for a successful career and more. An eight-time All-American gymnast from 2002-05, Eberle Dean is a physician's assistant at the University of Utah Orthopedic Center with the foot and ankle team.
Why did you become a physician's assistant?
Why did you become a physician's assistant?
I felt this profession fit me and my lifestyle. After doing a lot of research on it, I felt this was a career path that would allow me to have a family and at the same time have a successful career. I also like working with a team and as a PA, you work very closely with your attending physician.What is the best part about working as a PA?
I work in Orthopedics, specifically the foot and ankle. I would say the best part is when we are able to help a patient get back to being active and healthy or not hurting as much. We see a lot of trauma and acute injuries that really change a patient's life in an instant and having been an athlete, I can very much relate. It is so rewarding when that patient recovers and is back to their activities and doing what they enjoy. Same goes for people with chronic issues like severe arthritis or other ailments. I have witnessed many patients cry because they are able to walk or accomplish things they never thought they would be able to do again.When did you know you wanted to be a part of the health care field?
In high school, I had shadowed a physical therapist and didn't really fall in love with that aspect of medicine. Then I saw a Physician Assistant as a patient myself in Reno and really got interested in the profession. I knew from the beginning of college that Physician's Assistant was the way I wanted to go.How did going to school at the University of Utah prepare you to be successful in your career?
The University of Utah Physician Assistant Program is an amazing program. PA school is extremely demanding, but the program had resources that helped you succeed in every way. Also having done my undergrad at the University of Utah helped as well. Probably not so much for me getting into school, but for me personally, I knew I wanted to stay in Utah to complete my Master's Degree. It also allowed me the opportunity to find the Physician I am working for now because I saw him as a patient myself while I was on the gymnastics team.What did you learn from your time as a Red Rock that you have carried on throughout your professional career?
There are many things I learned as a Red Rock, but the biggest thing I use everyday is loyalty, dedication and teamwork. As a PA, you need to have a very strong Physician-PA relationship and you rely on each other a lot. My physician puts a lot of trust in me and I always want to do the best I can, not only for him, but also our team and most of all our patients.How has COVID-19 affected your daily work?
I used to see patients in clinic three days a week and was first assist in the operating room 1-2 days a week. Since the beginning of COVID-19, all elective surgeries were cancelled and we have moved all of our clinic visits to telemedicine visits. I am doing a large majority of work from home and only going into the clinic to see patients that have acute injuries or recently had surgery from an acute injury. It has been a huge adjustment doing telemedicine visits because a large majority of our job is the physical exam portion. But, patients have been very understanding and our clinic staff has been amazing and proactive in ordering the tests we need to be efficient during our visits with the patients.What advice would you give to people at home working through the challenges COVID-19 presents?
Oh man. I would say we are all in this together and having to navigate this craziness just like everyone else. I would say we need to take it one day at a time and sometimes even just one hour at a time. I have had to tell myself this for many weeks now. Everyone's life is different because of this and mine is definitely dramatically different now working from home full time and also being a full-time mom. There are times where I have felt almost suffocated being at home so much and have become very overwhelmed. But, I have had to take a step back and try and find the positive in this because I know it might not change for a while. I have become very grateful for the time I get to spend with my 5 and 2 year old. I never would have had this opportunity and it actually has been really neat to kind of "get to know" them better and spend time with them. It has also made me realize how much I do appreciate my job and the people and patients I get to interact with everyday. So again, I would say we are all in this together and I hope people are able to find some positive in this. We will get through this!
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