LA CROSSE, Wis. — A Wisconsin doctor is using the skills he learned while in the military to help his patients.
Dr. Matthew Sherrill has been working at Mayo Clinic Health System in La Crosse for the past 10 years. So scrubbing in is a part of his daily routine. He is a plastic and reconstruction surgeon. Mayo Clinic Health System wasn’t his first stop. He started his career by serving in the U.S. Air Force as a flight surgeon.
“One of the things that is neat about being flight surgeon is not only are you doctor but you are also an air crew member and you have a job as a part of the flight crew,” Sherrill said. “So part of my job was to go fly each month.”
It’s been 18 years since he served, and he is no longer flying right now. However, he has fond memories of his service and he is able to apply those to his everyday life.
“It’s really rewarding. I was actually in the Middle East on 9/11,” Sherrill said. “So I was right there when it happened and I can remember being part of the start of the mobilization to start the war on terrorism.”
Sherrill’s love for service didn’t stop when he got out of the Air Force. In his 10 years with Mayo Clinic Health System, he’s been able to help patients every day. He can take the skills he learned while serving as a flight surgeon and use them in the operating room to this day.
“Utilizing all of my resources for the best care of the patient is one of the biggest things that I brought from my frame of mind from my time in the military as a flight surgeon to the operating room,” Sherrill said.
He’s been able to transfer his skills he learned while in the sky and bring them to the operating table to help patients in Wisconsin.