| 2015 Q4 | story by JANICE EARLY
The Lawrence Memorial Hospital Medical Staff recently welcomed 12 new medical providers to the community, including a doctor who was one of only two internal medicine physicians finishing residency at the University of Kansas Medical Center who chose primary care as their practice focus.
Martha Allen, MD, completed her internal medicine residency at KU this summer. She has joined The Internal Medicine Group. Dr. Allen attended Central Methodist University in Fayette, Missouri, as a Bright Flight Scholarship recipient all four years. She earned her doctorate of medicine at KU and headed to the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis to complete her internship in internal medicine and pediatrics.
Also joining The Internal Medicine Group is Jennifer Schrimsher, MD, who specializes in infectious diseases. Dr. Schrimsher completed her undergraduate degree at Emporia State University. She completed medical school at KU, where she also earned a master’s degree in public health. Both her residency in internal medicine and fellowship in infectious diseases were completed at KU Medical Center. She has worked has a clinical microbiologist since 2000. She is board certified in internal medicine and board eligible in infectious disease medicine.
Lynley Holman, MD, joined Lawrence OB-GYN Specialists on October 28. Dr. Holman grew up in Junction City and earned her undergraduate degree at the University of Kansas. She completed her medical training at the University of Kansas Medical School, and residency at Maricopa Integrated Health System/St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center in Phoenix. Dr. Holman is board certified in obstetrics and gynecology, and is a Fellow of the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
Diane Knapic, APRN, joined the LMH staff in October to provide mental health consultation to patients in the emergency department and on inpatient units. She completed her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in nursing at Wichita State University, and has extensive experience managing mental illness.
Two new general surgeons joined Lawrence General Surgery in August: Jared Konie, MD and Blake Conklin, DO. Dr. Konie grew up in the Kansas City area and attended Lake Forest College in Illinois for undergraduate studies. He earned his doctorate of medicine degree at KU and completed a five-year general surgery residency at the University of Missouri School of Medicine’s University Hospital in Columbia. He specializes in advanced minimally invasive surgery.
Dr. Conklin, a Topeka native, earned his bachelor’s degree at KU and completed medical school at the Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences. His general surgery residency was completed at Ohio Health’s Doctors Hospital/Grant Medical Center in Columbus, Ohio. Dr. Conklin completed his fellowship in advanced laparoscopic and robotic surgery at Sinai Hospital/Northwest Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland.
Michael Neilson, DMD, joined Oral Surgery Kansas, LC in early August. Dr. Neilson grew up in the San Joaquin Valley of California and completed his undergraduate degree at Portland State University. He attended dental school at Oregon Health & Science University, and finished an additional one year Advanced Education in General Dentistry. In 2007, Dr. Neilson began his oral surgery training at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, and was ultimately reassigned to Travis Air Force Base in California.
Leana Guerin, MD, a pathologist, joined the LMH Medical Staff in August. Born in Montreal, she attended the University of Iowa for her undergraduate, medical and master’s degrees. She also remained at Iowa for her residency and fellowship programs. She has special interest in gastrointestinal pathology.
Total Family Care welcomed Jennifer Dixon, ARNP, to their practice at the end of August. Dixon attended nursing school at Baker University and completed her advanced practice degree at Washburn University.
Emily Cortés, DDS, became a member of Lawrence Pediatric Dentistry also in August. A native to the Kansas City metro, she completed her undergraduate education at Kansas State University and finished dental school at the University of Missouri—Kansas City. She attended the University of Minnesota for her residency in pediatric dentistry.
Shawn Jackson, MD, joined Lawrence Anaesthesia, PA in July. Born in Pratt, Dr. Jackson completed his undergraduate degree at Emporia State University and attended medical school at the University of Kansas Medical Center. Both his internship and residency in anesthesiology were completed at the KU School of Medicine in Wichita.
Lawrence Emergency Medicine Associates welcomed Andrew Pirotte, MD, in July. Although born in Fort Scott, Dr. Pirotte spent much of his childhood in Joplin, Missouri. He returned to Kansas to complete his undergraduate degree at the University of Kansas and attended medical school at the University of Kansas Medical Center. Dr. Pirotte finished his internship and residency programs in emergency medicine at Northwestern University in Chicago.
Recruitment of well-qualified physicians and health care providers to serve the community’s medical needs well into the future is a primary focus of Lawrence Memorial Hospital. LMH works closely with hospital-employed and private physician practices to assist with recruiting efforts.
Sherri Vaughn, MD, a family practice physician at Total Family Care, has coordinated physician recruitment activities at LMH for many years. Dr. Vaughn said the competition for top physician candidates, especially in the area of primary care, is intense across the country. “We are so fortunate to have such exceptional physicians choosing to practice in Lawrence,” she said.
Attracting and retaining outstanding physicians is good for the community on many levels. Besides increasing the capacity to diagnose and treat more people in a timely manner, the addition of new physicians and advanced practitioners contributes to the economic development of the community. New health care providers mean the creation of more jobs as additional nursing and support staff are needed.
Keeping health care strong at the local level is the hospital’s goal. LMH invites the community to welcome these new providers, who are focused on serving the health and wellness needs of area residents. For more information about these or any of the medical providers credentialed by the LMH Medical Staff, visit lmh.org/providers.