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“ It was very rewarding to expand my studies there. Plus, I met great people and at the end of six months, I went to Germany to put my things in order and then flew to the U. S. just three weeks later.”
It’ s difficult for a foreign graduate to be accepted into a U. S. residency program, as Dr. Krause found out. Prior to her research in Brazil, she applied to 40 different OB / GYN programs throughout the United States. Two invitations came back, one from Las Vegas and the other from Springfield, Ill. She hoped for Springfield and was lucky enough to be accepted there at Southern Illinois University.
“ I was completely by myself at first. I didn’ t know anybody and residency is a big adjustment regardless,” Dr. Krause said, noting that medical school in Germany didn’ t quite prepare her for the rigors of residency in America.
“ While Germany’ s medical schooling is very good at theoretical work, there isn’ t as much hands-on experience done there. For example, medical students here work night shifts. I never did night shifts in Germany. So, that shock combined with not knowing anybody was a little tough to get used to,” she said.
But, for someone who lived on three continents in a year’ s time, adaptation comes naturally.“ I got my apartment and car. I made friends and got over the shock of the beginning. Throughout my residency, I remained very interested in my studies on implantation and decided to apply for fellowship. That led to me being accepted here at the University of Louisville in 2011,” she said.
Dr. Krause’ s Louisville fellowship in reproductive endocrinology and fertility would change her life in many ways. She found that the city of Louisville reminded her of Heidelberg, discovered mentors within her fellowship, became involved with organized medicine through the American College of Obstetrics & Gynecology( ACOG) and the Louisville OBGYN Society and, last but not least, met and fell in love with her husband, Tony Diebold.
“ I’ m still amazed. It gives me goosebumps thinking about it,” she said, smiling.“ A fellow, whom I’ d met just once before, asked if I wanted to go out to dinner. There were supposed to be other people but it ended up just being her and her husband, me and her husband’ s best friend, who is now my husband.”
“ He told me he knew German and had lived in Germany. I said okay, figuring he was just trying to impress me. But, as we were leaving, he wrote his number down. The German‘ 1’ is written like the American‘ 7’. When he wrote, he wrote it the German way, and I realized then he knew what he was talking about. We didn’ t start dating right away, but suddenly he was a lot more interesting,” she laughed. They married in Germany in September 2014, and honeymooned by hiking the Alps, a destination they return to each year. While they’ ve talked about returning to Germany, Dr. Krause’ s blossoming practice and Tony’ s commitment to the family business, Fabricated Metals LLC, has kept their roots planted firmly in Louisville.
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