ETSU Residents Tour Rural Practice Sites
Twelve second-year residents in the Department of Family Medicine at East Tennessee State University saw first hand the health care benefits that rural and underserved residents in rural Tennessee communities enjoy.
On July 16, 2009, a group from Family Medicine Associates of Kingsport toured Hawkins Medical Center, a Rural Health Services Consortium clinic in Rogersville. Joyce Simon and Dr. Jose Velasco treated the group to a virtual tour of the community during a slide presentation that included information about sites belonging to the Consortium.
The trip continued down Highways 11W and 25E to Baptist Hospital of Cocke County and Rural Medical Services (RMS). Dr. Deana Brotherton, Medical Director of RMS, and Larry Stanifer, CEO of RMS, presented a discussion about the benefits of working for RMS. The clinic is located across the street from the hospital, which makes it easier for Dr. Brotherton to see patients at the clinic and to go to the hospital for any obstetric procedures that arise.
Residents toured the Rural Medical Services clinic in Parrottsville with Dr. Pamela Sanders and listened to a presentation on the clinic’s migrant outreach program. The program serves the Spanish speaking populations in Cocke, Grainger, Greene, Hamblen, Jefferson and Sevier counties in Tennessee.
The resident group from Family Medical Associates of Johnson City traveled to Sevierville to see the new LeConte Medical Center, which is currently under contruction. Heather Webb, Medical Staff Services Director, met the group and issued each person a hard hat. Ellen Wilhoit, Chief Administrative Officer, and Wayne Spence, the construction supervisor from Rechenbach, gave the residents one of the first walking tours of the new facility. They discussed expanded services, additional equipment and potential growth for the hospital. Following the tour, the residents attended the medical faculty meeting and discussed details for future rotations with Drs. Donald Parnell, James Koerten, Julio Guerra and William Fry. Mary Vance, director of Mountain Hope Clinic, spoke to the group and addressed potential opportunities for collaboration.
The Rural Partnership’s chief executive officer, Cindy Siler, and chief operating officer, Jackie Cavnar, traveled with the residents and discussed The Rural Partnership’s mission to place physicians in rural and underserved communities in Tennessee.
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