If you work in the Rebecca Sealy Building on the UTMB Galveston campus, then you’re probably familiar with Jarvis Givens. He’s the eight-story building’s sole trash technician and on any given day, you can see him in his bright red shirt, hustling and bustling through the hallways as he greets everyone with a “Hello, how are you doing?” and a chuckle.

When most people think of an emergency room, they probably picture ambulances with blaring sirens rushing up to the ER carrying patients with bloody bodies. They may envision a man clutching his chest from heart attack pain, as he’s rushed through the halls on a stretcher.

When my manager first suggested I write an “A day in the life of” story about a midwife, I thought “OK.” Then I thought, wait a minute, am I going to witness a live birth with a moaning mother who’s refused medication? I imagined her lying in a kiddie pool with a midwife rubbing her back, wind chimes blowing through the wind and yoga music playing in the background.

We’ve all seen horror stories of prison life through overly dramatic films and television shows. But what is life really like in prison? Our fellow UTMB correctional managed care employees, who work within the Texas Department of Criminal Justice system, have an idea.

With the massive media coverage UTMB has received of late, I decided to sit down with Media Relations Director Raul Reyes for a glimpse into his work life. From the Ebola outbreak to chikungunya to our researchers’ recent fat-burning discovery, UTMB has been making major news and Reyes and his team have been working hard, behind the scenes, to make it all come together.

“Safety first. Buckle your seat belt,” said Officer Curtis Dorsey as I climb into his police car. Dorsey just celebrated 10 years with the UTMB Police Department this past June, and today I’m joining him for a ride-along and a sneak peek into his work life.