Charles Pipes, APRN, AGACNP, is an adult gerontology acute care nurse practitioner with the UT Health East Texas Pulmonary Care Institute. He also is a progressive care certified nurse, which is a specialty certification for nurses who provide direct care to acutely ill adult patients. Pipes said a desire to help people led him to pursue a career in healthcare, and that he approaches patient care with the goal of doing my best for every patient, every time.” I started off in emergency medicine as a paramedic. Nursing was a logical choice from there,” he said. My interest is in pulmonary and intensive care medicine. I offer a fresh perspective as a nurse practitioner, but that perspective is seasoned by 18 years working as a registered nurse in critical care.” When not caring for patients, Pipes enjoys fishing and driving to the coast whenever the opportunity arises. He and his wife of 25 years have five children and seven grandchildren, along with a menagerie of chickens, dogs and cats.