Family Medical Center opens today

A new remodel of a 25-year-old building to combine some practices in the same location culminates today with the opening of Northern Montana Health Care's Northern Montana Family Medical Center.

"We're delighted that we found a good use for that building and the renovation makes it look spectacular," Northern Montana Health Care President and CEO Dave Henry said this morning, adding that the health care staff members are delighted with the work Clausen and Sons did on the building.

The center, located in the hospital's former behavioral health center south of the main parking lot and connected to the hospital, will bring family practice and obstetrics-gynaecology providers into the same location.

"We're excited to start practicing medicine out of this beautiful new space," Dr. Karrie Lien, a family medicine provider at Northern Montana Health Care said in a press release. "Having both the OB/GYN and family medicine providers working together in this group practice model is an innovative way to provide care to the whole family."

Northern Montana Health Care spokesperson Julianne LaSmith said this morning that the connection to the hospital will be convenient for patients and doctors for several reasons that include the connections to departments such as X-rays, laboratory work and surgical day care.

The space will be used by 10 providers. Lien, Dr. Carol Kerr, Dr. Michael Nolan and certified physicians assistants Jeremy Patrick, Debbie Paulsen, Jessica Sheehy and Britney Wever will provide the family medicine services and Dr. Fatima Abdulai, Dr. Margo Muniz and Doctor of Nursing Practice and Family Nurse Practitioner Anita Kellam will provide the OB/GYN services.

"I've been with NMHC since 1999, and this is the first time we will have these two practices combined in one space." Lien said in the press release. "Medical doctors, physician assistants and a nurse practitioner all working together for the benefit of our patients and the Hi-Line community; I am excited for the possibilities and learning experiences this will provide us."

LaSmith said the orthopedic surgery and internal medicine practices in the Northern Montana Medical Group West Clinic will be expanding into the extra space in the clinic, which now will be known as the Northern Montana Specialty Medical Center. The hospital plans to move the Northern Montana Vision Center into Specialty Medical Center sometime this year.