In the heart of Nevada’s Cowboy Country, as the last major waypoint on an eastbound journey to Utah, the Silver State’s third-largest community sits among the sagebrush, home to generations of miners, ranchers, and others who appreciate blue skies and the benefits of rural living.
Elko has long been an important hub of activity for Nevada Health Centers, and its community cachet grew just a bit more on February 22, 2018, during a special groundbreaking ceremony at our Elko Family Medical and Dental Center, located at 762 14th Street, in the heart of Elko proper.
In advance of a new family medicine residency program that begins this summer, community partners including county officials; representatives from Northeastern Nevada Regional Hospital (NNRH); the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine (UNR Med); and others joined together to honor the health centers’ history in the community, to acknowledge the hospital’s role in transferring ownership of the health center building to Elko County, and to commemorate the start of the new family medicine residency training program in the area.
After brief remarks by Nevada Health Centers’ Director of Northern Operations Terri Clark, County Commissioner Delmo Andreozzi, and former NNRH CEO Rick Palagi, attendees donned hard hats, grabbed ceremonial sledgehammers, and took a few well-aimed swings at a wall designated for demolition as part of a construction process designed to enhance clinical space for the new residents in training.
The construction project will add new patient rooms and capacity to the Elko Family Medical and Dental Center, giving residents and visitors additional access to primary care services via the residency program. The program is expected to ramp up in early July, with two residents and four UNR Med faculty rotating through the Elko facility.
”The U.S. has an ever-growing need for primary care providers,” said Nevada Health Centers CEO Walter Davis, “and we are pleased to partner with UNR Med, the county, and the local hospital provider in Elko to launch a new family medicine training program in this part of the state.” Davis added, “Resident physicians often remain in the areas where they complete their residency work, and we remain hopeful that these medical professionals, who we’ll help train, will continue to serve the local community with their important and needed skills.”