Each year, the Lake Houston Chamber chooses the top nurse and the top medical professional and recognizes them at the organization’s Annual Salute to Health Care Luncheon.
“When one healthcare professional is honored, it really honors every nurse and every doctor in the community,” said Curling. “Doctors donate a lot of time and their families make a lot of sacrifices in order to take care of people in our community, so I think it’s an honor for the chamber to recognize healthcare professionals.”
This year, three Memorial Hermann employees were selected as finalists. Day Surgery Nurse Jan Pfitzer, RN was a Nurse of the Year finalist, while Curling and Doan Do, MD, a primary care physician at the Memorial Hermann Convenient Care Center in Summer Creek, were finalists for Medical Professional of the Year.
With 28 years of experience as an anesthesiologist, Curling earned her medical degree from the The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) Medical School and a master’s in business administration from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. Under her leadership, Memorial Hermann Northeast has earned recognition for advances in quality and safety, including reaccreditation as an Advanced Primary Stroke Center and Chest Pain Center with Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (angioplasty), acknowledgment by the Dallas Morning News’ Top 10 Composite Safety Index, and a Hospital Safety Score "A" Rating by the Leapfrog Group.
In addition, Curling donates her time for a variety of community and professional organizations such as the American Society of Anesthesiologists, the Texas Society of Anesthesiologists, the Texas Medical Association, the Harris County Medical Society, the Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center, the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, the Girl Scouts of America, the Kingwood Republican Women, the First Presbyterian Church of Kingwood, the American Heart Association, and the Board of Health Museum.
The Lake Houston Area Chamber of Commerce is a 501(c)(6) non-profit organization of professional business men and women who have joined together for the purpose of promoting the civic and commercial progress of the Lake Houston Area. It is comprised of 1,100 members and serves Atascocita, Fall Creek, Humble, Kingwood, Summerwood and portions of East Montgomery County.