The Youth Clinic’s July Provider Spotlight is Dr. Carole Anderson. After graduating from Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine in Kirksville, Missouri, she completed her residency as well as a fellowship in Neonatology in Lansing, Michigan at Michigan State University. Dr. Anderson is Board Certified and a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
What is your favorite outdoor activity to do in Colorado and why?
Hiking and fly fishing. I love to just set out in nature where it is quiet and scenic.
Are you a Colorado Native? If not, where did you grow up? What is your favorite thing about where you grew up?
I grew up in Michigan but have lived in Colorado 17 years now. I miss the abundance of water, autumn reds, cider mills & Northern Lights in the upper peninsula.
What is your favorite restaurant in Colorado?
My favorite restaurant is probably Austin’s in Old Town Fort Collins. I love that it is local to our area. I love just almost everything on the menu but their Buffalo Meatloaf is my favorite.
If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?
I think my biggest bucket list travel destination currently would be South Africa – would love to do a safari or fish the Seychelles Island.
Why you choose your profession?
My father was a physician, a pediatric allergist, so I have grown up in a “medical family”. I knew during adolescence that I wanted to work with children in some capacity and thought about education as well as medicine. I chose pediatrics because of the opportunity to work with families from birth through early adulthood.
What is your favorite part about working at The Youth Clinic?
The Youth Clinic was my first and only job out of pediatric and neonatology training. I wanted to be in a practice that I could stay in long-term and grow up with my families. Pediatrics is truly a continually growing field of medicine – no 2 kids are alike, no 2 families are alike. I love being able to impact the kids I work with and reassuring, educating the parents I encounter. I truly feel like my patients and my peers are one big huge family, this is why I love working here.
What advice do you have for your patients/audience?
My advice to families is, enjoy your kids – you have to have a good sense of humor to raise kids. Relax – mellow parents tend to raise mellow kids – goes back to enjoying your kids. Let them fall – they can’t learn from their mistakes if you don’t grant them the freedom to fail or make the wrong choices. Love them to your best ability – you can never love them too much.