CHARISSE BUCHANAN
Nurse Practitioner Specialist
Charisse working after hours on some files at home By Sandra McKinney
Charisse Buchanan, NP, is a long way from Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa, where she was born, raised, and began her studies in the health-care profession. Charisse received a degree in Microbiology and a Master’s Degree in Food Science at The University of Pretoria. She presented her thesis on the study of low-fat cheese, using specific grains from Africa as the fat replacement. But, rather than remain in research and development for food companies, Buchanan wanted more direct-contact with patients and the medical field. Her father, Alan Buchanan, and mother, Teresa came to the United States in 2009. Alan had accepted a transfer to America as a mechanical engineer with the Timken Company in Canton, Ohio. Her father suggested to Charisse that she also come to America to gain her nursing degree. Charisse left behind all that she was familiar with in South Africa and moved to America. At least her parents were here to greet her and guide her in the new world of America. Working in the medical field must be in the younger Buchanan blood, as Charisse left behind her brother, Glynn, who is a dentist in Pretoria and her cousin, Francois, who is a neurosurgeon in in Bloemfontein of the Free State, South Africa. Arriving in Canton, Ohio, on December 30, 2010, Charisse celebrated the coming of the New Year 2011 as her welcome to America. She immediately enrolled at Kent State University in Kent, Ohio, in the nursing program. She received an accelerated bachelor’s degree in nursing. Buchanan commented, “University studies are a bit more laid-back in America. In South Africa, we did not have summers off, vacations or breaks from college like here in America. In South Africa, getting your college degree was similar to working a job; we went to school from 8:00am to 5:00pm, five days a week.” Consequently, it 48
March 2018
Gizmo sporting his Bow Tie after attending Puppy Training.
