Victoria Gonzalez, NP

About Victoria Gonzalez

The opportunity to shadow a few nurse practitioners as a young adult gave Victoria Gonzalez, FNP, an opportunity to see first-hand what a medical career could be like. “I was in awe of the career and the impact they made on their patients,” she says of the nurse practitioners.

Victora earned both her Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience and her Master of Science – Family Nurse Practitioner at The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio. She has worked as a registered nurse in trauma, urology, vascular surgery and wound care at large hospitals in Columbus and Chicago. Victoria also spent time as a family nurse practitioner treating and communicating with the underserved, Spanish-speaking population at an Ohio medical clinic; she is fluent in Spanish.

In her role, Victoria educates patients to empower them to make decisions and take charge of their health. She chose this specialty, because sleep medicine is extremely important and often overlooked. “Promoting …healthy sleep and treating sleep disorders will improve a person’s health and overall quality of life,” she says.

Victoria’s philosophy in working with patients is to emphasize preventative care. She encourages healthy diet and regular exercise and routine screenings as building blocks for living a healthy life. “Every person that walks through the door comes with their own set of social, psychological and physiological differences,” she says. “Looking at the whole picture to prevent and treat disease is critical for successful outcomes.”

Her hope is that patients know she is there to listen and work with them. Shared decision making is when Victoria believes health care functions best.

In her own words…

Who is or was the most influential people/role models in your life?  My mother and father. They have taught me everything under the sun about the most important things in life, such as relationships and family.

What was your first job growing up? What do you remember about it?  Growing up, I was the neighborhood babysitter. I loved feeling that sense of responsibility and watching the kids grow through the many stages of development.  

What is your favorite food? Movie?  My favorite food would have to be tacos. My favorite movie, for sentimental reasons, is The Parent Trap.

What was your best/worst subjects in school growing up?  My best subject was always science, particularly biology and psychology. My worst subject in high school was Chinese; it was so tough to learn!

If you could sit down to dinner with anyone (alive or deceased) who would it be and why?  My grandfather. He was the kindest, most loving man… and he always had the best stories.

In addition to medicine, what are you passionate about?  I am passionate about exercise! I have gotten into running in the past couple of years, but I also love yoga, weightlifting, cycling and swimming.

What are your hobbies, interests?  I love experimenting in the kitchen. I like trying new recipes and baking, especially sourdough bread.

What is something most people don’t know about you?  Growing up, my family moved around a lot. I was born in Venezuela and have lived in six different countries.