Girard Medical Center on Friday hosted a grand opening and ribbon cutting reception for new digs for its local family practice physician, Dr. Ron Edwards.
“This has been a long time coming and I'm very grateful to the (hospital) board and the administration for their support,” Edwards said. “It's just a wonderful new facility.”
The new clinic, at 417 E. Washington, replaces and existing clinic facility down the street. It's one of three satellite clinics operated by Girard Medical Center. The others are in Cherokee and Frontenac. There's been a satellite clinic in Arma for more than 20 years.
“It came to a point where we had to reinvest in our facilities here to ensure there would be medical care for the residents of Arma for a long time to come,” said Kenny Boyd, CEO of Girard Medical Center. “This facility represents Girard Medical Center's investment in Arma's health care for many years to come. It's just a natural extension of our services.”
Edwards joined the GMC staff in May 1986, fresh out of his residency at the University of Kansas Medical Center. The new facility is the third clinic GMC has built in Arma since Edwards came on board.
When he joined the staff, Girard Medical Center was “a very family-medicine-based hospital,” Edwards said. “And this is still true. It was a real nice fit.”
For the time being, the new clinic represents a continuation of Edwards' practice, with no major changes planned for the foreseeable future, Boyd said. Staffing of the clinic has been expanded to include a part-time nurse practitioner, who will be seeing patients and will be filling in for Edwards on his day off, Thursday mornings, when the clinic has historically been closed, Edwards said.
The clinic facility is situated on a corner lot, with additional room available to the west for future expansion. A “mirror-image” of the existing clinic can be added on to the west side of the building, doubling it in size without significantly impacting operations of Edwards' current practice.
There are currently no plans for that expansion, but some possible changes in hours and services could be coming after the first of the year, he said. While he'd like to see the addition of dental services for the residents of Arma — it's something he's been trying to add for the entire 23 years he's been in practice, he said — the needs of the community at large will dictate what changes are implemented.
Edwards is originally from Pittsburg. He accepted the position with Girard Medical Center 23 years ago because he didn't want his children growing up in a big city. He wanted them to have the advantages of a rural lifestyle he grew up with, he said.
Both the practice of medicine and the world have changed significantly since Edwards hung up his shingle, he said. People today want everything they need to be available 24 hours a day, and that includes medical services. It's very different than when he started out.
“When I started my practice, if I was on call for a weekend and we had a busy weekend at the hospital, I may have seen 12 patients in the emergency room,” he said. “Now, it's not unusual to see 50 patients or more. Care has changed in that, in a world where pharmacies are open 24 hours a day, people seek care even, if it's not an emergency, through the emergency room.
Arma Medical Clinic draws patients from three Kansas counties and three Missouri counties, Edwards said. But its centralized location in downtown Arma is still an advantage for the residents of that community, a large number of whom are older and retired, he said.
“We have better transportation opportunities for the elderly than we used to have, but it's still difficult for older people to get where they need to be sometimes,” Edwards said. “By having the office centrally located, it allows people to walk to the clinic.”
Arma resident Barry Bedene agreed, adding the new facility is a welcome continuation of Edwards' long-standing practice.
“It means a lot to the city that we have a doctor here in town and a nice, beautiful facility,” Bedene said. “I was here when they started the first clinic.
“The old building has served its purpose and they needed the new building. It's a great asset to the city of Arma.”