Spotlight on Scottie Wahlstrom!
When did you join UTHealth? What brought you here?
I began working at UTHealth in April 2003. I worked in several different industries prior to UT. I was in banking for seven years, a large CPA firm for one year, and the oil industry for 12 years. Prior to joining UT, I worked at William’s Gas Pipeline. I was there for 12 years and was laid off in December 2002. I received a very generous severance package and was able to take my time looking for the perfect job. The mother of one of my son’s friends told me she worked at the UT Medical School and how great it was, so I narrowed my search to jobs at UT. I interviewed at the School of Dentistry and the Medical School.
Tell me about your work history here.
My first job at UT was in the Department of Surgery, Division of Organ Transplantation. I was the executive assistant to the director of Liver Transplant. Working with surgeons was quite different than working with corporate executives. After my first week, I thought, ‘What have I gotten myself into?’ While in Liver Transplant, I volunteered with the American Liver Foundation and helped to organize the Liver Walk in Houston each year. Our division also hosted a monthly Liver Lecture at Trevisio that I coordinated. I really enjoyed organizing both of these events. Then I was told that our division would be moving to Physicians of Texas, a Memorial Hermann Affiliate, and my position was going, too. I left UT in October 2006 to work at Physicians of Texas. After roughly a year and a half, I was not happy and wanted to return to UT.