“I’m the Eyes of Medicine:” An Alum’s Full-Circle Career as a Sonographer

A MCPHS graduate and OBGYN sonographer, Sonora Shelton is growing her clinical expertise while pursuing a master’s degree and a future in education.

Nominative determinism just might have played a role in Sonora Shelton’s decision to pursue sonography.

“They say people with the last name Baker are more likely to become bakers, Carpenters tend to be carpenters, and my name is Sonora,” she said with a laugh. “So, sonography was always in the back of my mind.”

A 2024 graduate of the diagnostic medical sonography program at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS), Shelton is now an adjunct faculty member at MCPHS and is responsible for tutoring students on the Boston and Worcester campuses. She’s also a registered diagnostic medical sonographer specializing in OBGYN.

“As a sonographer, I’m the eyes of medicine,” she said. “Maternal-fetal medicine is very high-risk. If you don’t find something, the doctor isn’t going to know about it, so you have a big responsibility.”

It’s not just her name that brought Shelton to the field. An experience when she was younger found her coming face-to-face with sonography as a patient.

“I had to get an ultrasound after finding a lump on my breast,” Shelton said. “I got to talking with the sonographer, and she made me feel safe during a super vulnerable exam at just 14 years old. She was so nice, and knowledgeable, and I thought it was really cool.”

Today, she said she enjoys working in OBGYN because it’s “different every day.”

“It's interesting seeing a fetus develop. A lot of people might think the work is repetitive, but I like discovering the reasons behind certain conditions,” she said. “Like, why isn't this baby getting enough nutrients? Is there something wrong with the placenta?"

Hailing from a “small desert town” in California, Shelton earned her first bachelor’s degree in biology in her home state. After she decided on sonography as a career, she had to adjust when she made the move to Massachusetts. But she quickly found her footing on campus, eventually becoming one of two MCPHS students nominated to join the Emerging Leaders Program of the Society of Diagnostic Medical Sonography, a national network of sonographers.

“Coming from a very large university where I did my first bachelor’s, I felt like a small fish in a big pond. But at MCPHS, I was part of a small cohort of 10. I really thrived in that environment, and it inspired me to step up and take on more leadership roles,” Shelton said.

While the program was rigorous, requiring long hours in the lab, Shelton said finding a balance helped.

“I tell my students now that it’s important to find time to just ground yourself, because it's so easy to get wrapped up in board exams and tests,” she said.

Shelton’s work as a tutor is a perfect complement to her interest in education, which started when she did a stint as a substitute teacher after finishing her first bachelor’s degree. She’s currently getting her master’s degree in radiologic sciences, with a specialization in education.

“I love teaching because I feel like I’m making a difference,” she said. “When I finish my master’s, I want to try and find a position as a clinical instructor, teaching classes and labs. I’d just like to be working with students.” 

For now, Shelton still wants to “get more scanning years under her belt.” As a working sonographer, she’s always building her skills. For her, a key benefit of the job is the opportunity to build relationships with patients who return for weekly scans.

“I had a patient whose baby wasn’t hitting the growth percentiles we normally like to see. After a few appointments, we had established a good relationship. She confided in me, saying she was worried she was doing something wrong,” Shelton recalled. “I told her, ‘Nope, sometimes this stuff just happens. Every kid and every pregnancy is different, and it’s nothing you’re doing.’”

Like the sonographer who looked after her all those years ago, Shelton said she strives to make her patients feel comfortable. 

“Eventually, that patient came back and showed me her baby,” Shelton said with a smile. “Even though he might have been small, he was perfectly healthy. It was a great full-circle moment.”