Mary Lou Ross, RN, CDCES

A native Mississippian, Mary Lou was born and raised in the Delta in Cleveland, MS.  From the beginning, she knew that nursing was her future.  Mary Lou earned her license from Copiah-Lincoln School of Nursing in 2000 and began a career that would include an enormous range of clinical specialties and lead her across the country.  From her work in the Operating Room as a Surgical Nurse, to postoperative, hospital and rehabilitation care she gained a wide range of skills and understanding of what it means to be a healthcare provider.  It was this broad base of experience that led her to the pinnacle of her career passions, to be a teacher and educator.  Mary Lou pursued this new aspect of her profession by using her hard-earned proficiencies to train new nursing students.  This venture resulted in the development of nursing professionals in 48 states across the country and eventually led her back home.  She was instrumental in creating one of the first comprehensive Diabetes Education and Management programs in Southeast Mississippi.  Whether the focus is prevention or management of existing diabetes, she continued to learn and develop new skills during this time and is now an expert in the newest therapies and technologies available in this area of healthcare. Mary Lou is a proud mother of 4 children and happily resides here in Brookhaven with her husband of 27 years.