Physician Assistant Joel Ambrosio says his two years as a hospital corpsman (medic) in the U.S. Navy instilled in him the drive to give his all and offer his best for the mission, every encounter, every time. That has translated to his job now, as a physician assistant at the NorthBay Center for Primary Care in Green Valley. “My mission is to provide the best personalized care I can to the patients in my charge and to do so with unswerving commitment,” said the Vallejo native. “I believe my military training definitely instilled that in me and I have carried it through each stage of my medical career.”

He joined the military when he was 18. His dream job at the time would have been to work at Naval Air Station Alameda—close to home and family. Unfortunately, he joined at a time when bases were closing, and that dream job didn’t materialize. (Alameda closed in 1997.)

Instead, he was assigned to work at Assault Craft Unit Four in Little Creek, Virginia, before moving on as a surgery scrub tech at Portsmouth Naval Hospital in Virginia, caring for shipmates and learning that he loved medicine, especially in a primary care setting.

“The Navy really taught me to appreciate the team aspect of medicine. Now I’m able to bring that forward and be part of an excellent team here at NorthBay,” he said.