Terri Isbell

Graduate Medical Education Program Coordinator III
Department of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation

First UTSW job: Administrative Assistant in 1993.

Best part about my job: For the past 25 years, I have been a GME Program Coordinator, which is a unique, meaningful, and important role. My knowledge base increases each year due to GME continuously evolving, and my experience allows me to teach/mentor others. I love never having the same day twice.

How co-workers describe me: According to my staff: funny, smart, hardworking, reliable, resourceful, and relatable.

Funniest UTSW memory: Back in the day, cell phone companies provided customers with a limited number of calls or text messages. To avoid putting my residents at risk for exceeding the number of free calls or texts, I would send text messages to their hospital pagers. One day, the program director said, “Terri, I need you to ask the page operators for the transcript of pages that Dr. So-and-So received over the past two weeks.” After having a “heart-a-stroke,” I said, “What, what do you mean? Their text pages are actually saved? Like all of them?” Had I known, I would have not been sending texts that were not work-related, such as, “Mama needs some M&M’s,” or “You better get your behind to clinic now!”

I’m really good at: Problem-solving and brain games/apps.

Passion: Playing soccer in the North Texas Women’s Soccer Association league.

Final note: It’s hard to believe I have been working at UT Southwestern for 30 years! Time sure does fly, especially when you’re having fun!