"As I walk into the room, I release whatever I was thinking of, or whoever I was working with beforehand, to entirely turn my attention to the person who is there in front of me. I open my heart to them, while not forsaking the fact that I'm there to be thinking about what they're saying, as well as having some compassion for them."

It is courageous to be a mother. It is even more so to be a working, single mother in the health care profession. Linda Meier embodies the finest attributes of a caregiver. She has been a practicing nurse for twenty years and has volunteered her time and considerable energy in Central Vietnam, for the American Cancer Society, and as a VISTA participant with Native Americans in San Juan County, Utah. While she became the proud mother of a daughter, Amelia, Meier maintains her dedication to the practice of healing her patients.

She has a holistic attitude toward healing, "If my patients aren't ready to go through an exam that may be particularly vulnerable for them, I give them permission to come back at another time. Most of the time they respond positively so I use that as a guide to see whether I am on or off target with them."

Meier's dedication to issues of women's health is evidenced in her continued efforts to educate her patients and to listen to what they say and do not say in the examining room. It is the personal impact of an illness on the patient's emotional and physical well-being that sustains Meier's interest in the art of medicine. Her interaction with people is the focus and heart of her work. What great fortune for her patients at San Francisco State.

For more information about the San Francisco State University Student Health Service, go to http://www.sfsu.edu/~shs.