“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”

— Ralph Waldo Emerson, American Philosopher

Florence Nightingale’s lamp to the Nursing path would start at age 7 for Dr. Thao-Ceballos when her paternal grandmother developed diabetes and “puj” could not self-perform the daily blood glucose checks. As the Home Health Nurse was reliant on the Thao family to take on the daunting task, at such a young age- Dr. Thao-Ceballos would rise to take on that responsibility. Years later, Dr. Thao-Ceballos would become more inspired to pursue Nursing by her aunt who successfully obtained her Bachelor of Science in Nursing at Mankato State University in Mankato, MN, then further advance her medical career and knowledge as an Emergency Department, Physician Assistant in Wisconsin.

In 2004, as a first-generation Hmong-American college graduate, Dr. Marie Thao-Ceballos

obtained her Bachelor of Science in Nursing with a minor in Psychology from Curry College in Milton, Massachusetts. Since then, Dr. Thao-Ceballos has developed a strong platform as a skilled Registered Nurse in the Sacramento Valley, with over 18 years of Nursing experience specific to Level I & Level II Trauma-Emergency Room, Critical Care Transport by both Air (helicopter & airplane) and Ground (ambulance) Transport, Clinical Nurse Specialist in Epidemiology- COVID 19, and Interventional Radiology. In addition to her Nursing tenure, Dr. Thao-Ceballos has been recognized as one of the first Hmong Life Fight RNs nationally.

Moving forward to 2021, Dr. Thao-Ceballos earned her Doctor of Nursing Practice as a Family Nurse Practitioner from Regis College in Weston, Massachusetts. Her passion for service, change, and breaking social barriers is evident in her accepted Doctoral Dissertation- Violence at Home Signal for Help: A Quantitative Study Assessing Emergency Room Nurse’s Knowledge and Confidence in the Support of Domestic Violence. Furthermore, Dr. Thao-Ceballos was honorably inducted into the international honor society of nurses- Sigma Theta Tau, in 2019 and she continues to hold positive standing.

The author John C. Maxwell states, “Change is inevitable. Growth is optional”. As a healthcare provider, Dr. Thao-Ceballos strives to be a change agent within the Hmong community. She hopes to bridge the progressive gap and address the explicable cultural clash in the maintenance, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of physical and/or mental health or illness. Additionally, she seeks to address the significant prevalence of Domestic Violence/Murder-Suicide in our Hmong communities. Lastly, she hopes to address the growing prevalence, lack of awareness, misunderstanding, and/or acceptance of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and/or Questioning, Intersexual, Asexual, Two-Sprit (LGBTQIA2S) within the Hmong culture. Collectively with Dr. Thao-Ceballos, the Hmong Nurses Association, could be the greatest catalyst.