Laura graduated with her BSN from the University of Kentucky in 1978 and her MSN from the University of Phoenix in 2009. She was a bedside labor and delivery nurse in a Level 1 facility (Good Samaritan in Lexington) from 1978 till 1990. From 1990 through 1998 she was a bedside labor and delivery/antepartum nurse at Central Baptist Hospital in Lexington. In 1998 she transitioned into  a perinatal educator role, covering labor and delivery, antepartum, OB operating/recovery and Mother/Baby. She was an instructor trainer for AWHONN's fetal heart monitoring program and certified in inpatient obstetrics. From 2010 through 2016 she also taught OB at Kentucky State University.

Her passion for improving the care of women and children has not stopped since retiring in 2021 as she remains active in several organizations focusing on perinatal health.