Dear Colleagues,
In my effort to visit all MU Health Care’s rural clinics, I recently spent a morning at our Ashland and Fulton locations.
I made the trip with Laura Morris, MD, chief medical officer for ambulatory care; Stephanie Cordray, chief ambulatory officer; Amy Hawkins, RN, director of nursing, ambulatory; and Jamie Wehnes, director of department and clinic operations.
Visiting Ashland
Our first stop was the Ashland Family Medicine clinic, where I met with Alex Zweig, MD, medical director of both the clinic and Family Medicine ambulatory services and associate professor of Family and Community Medicine; and Ameisha Crews, practice manager.
Other health care providers at the Ashland clinic include Luke Stephens, MD — who also serves as assistant residency program director and Sports Medicine fellowship director — Paige Beauparlant, MD, and Caitlin Featherston, PA, Kristen Hemmersmeier, DO, will be joining their team this fall.
I also enjoyed meeting Austin Greenwood, FNP, nurse practitioner in the Dermatology department, who conducts outreach at the Ashland and Boonville clinics; nurse navigator Correy Brocco, RN; triage nurses Dylan Paul, RN, and Lynette Jones, LPN; and charge nurse Heather Libby, RN.
Drs. Zweig, Stephens and Beauparlant studied at the University of Missouri School of Medicine; Drs. Stephens and Beauparlant also completed our Family Medicine residency program.
While serving nearly 10,000 patients annually, they also mentor medical students during rotates — and soon, PA students will join them under PA Featherston’s guidance.
On to Fulton
Next up was the Fulton Family Health clinic, led until recently by spouses Robert Pierce, MD, and Lisa Pierce, MD, who retired last summer. We were able to replace the Pierce husband-and-wife team with the Dudenhoeffers!
The clinic team now includes medical director Brice Windsor, DO, Brent Dudenhoeffer, MD, Cheyenne Dudenhoeffer, MD, Claire Wolber, MD — like me, a graduate of the UMKC School of Medicine — and Ashlea Horstman, PA. Except for Dr. Windsor, all the physicians on the team completed Family Medicine residencies at Mizzou.
The clinic is also fortunate to have Jennifer Patrick, a licensed clinical social worker, and Erin Collard, a clinical pharmacist, on staff.
Twice the size of the Ashland clinic, the Fulton clinic has 16 exam rooms and serves 20,000 patients each year. It also hosts a robust fall vaccination program and helps train the next generation of physicians, including Sooah Ku, who was doing her Family Medicine rotation the day I visited.
Closing With Callaway
The last clinic I visited was Callaway Physicians, near the now-closed Fulton Hospital — underscoring MU Health Care’s key role in maintaining access to care. This is the home clinic of Dr. Morris, where she has seen patients since her residency at Mizzou.
On the tour, I met medical director Heather Pierce, MD (no relation to the retired Drs. Robert and Lisa Pierce), Sam Holt McNair, MD — who graduated from the Mizzou School of Medicine and completed his residency in 2025 — Carl Tunink, MD and Jim Stevermer, MD. Dr. Tunink completed both a Family Medicine residency and a Family Medicine, Hospice and Palliative Medicine fellowship at the Mizzou School of Medicine.
A busy clinic with 12 exam rooms and nearly 20,000 patients annually, this clinic has hosted Family Medicine residents since opening nearly 50 years ago — essentially simultaneous to the creation of the Department of Family and Community Medicine. Among those I met was Cameron Meyer, MD, a Mizzou undergraduate and Mizzou School of Medicine graduate.
I also had the opportunity to meet business coordinator Emily Cheney; nursing supervisor Talia Doran, RN; nurses Heather Simpson, RN, and Mandy Holland, RN; nurse navigator Christina Willenburg, RN; charge nurse Amber Blake, RN; and laboratory technician Krystal Craghead, whose lab processes over 100 specimens per day. Sarah Peck, RN, manages both Callaway Physicians and Fulton Family Health.
Our final stop was at the 10 acres MU Health Care just purchased on Highway 54. An outpatient center will be built there within 3-5 years to consolidate services and expand access — an exciting step forward for the community.
Community Pride
Across these visits and the four I made earlier this year, I felt appreciation for the dedication and hard work of our doctors, nurses and staff in caring for rural Missourians.
I’m also proud of how many of these physicians began as Mizzou undergraduates, medical students and Family Medicine residents, ultimately choosing to build their careers within our health system.
I often share that pride with deans around the country, who tell me how difficult it can be to encourage graduates to practice in rural communities.
I always tell these deans: In Missouri, we have found a way. Let me tell you how we do it.
Sincerely,
Rick Barohn, MD
Executive Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs and Hugh E. and Sarah D. Stephenson Dean, School of Medicine
rbarohn@health.missouri.edu
