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Doctors paying home visits may sound like a service long past or rarely afforded, but 13 physicians at ETSU Health Family Medicine Johnson City visited patient homes across four counties Wednesday to conduct welfare checks and deliver supplies.

Many who participated were originally scheduled for a day off, but said they could not rest without knowing their patients’ wellbeing.

“As primary care physicians at ETSU Health, we have the honor of really getting to know our patients well,” said Dr. Christian Timmis. “So, getting word that patients you know are not reachable, and that they and their loved ones are potentially in harm’s way is the motivating factor for us.”

The clinic reached out to about 500 patients in high-risk areas to assess needs. Thanks to an interprofessional team effort organized by McKenzie Highsmith, Pharm.D., 13 physicians traveled to communities in Washington, Greene, Carter and Unicoi counties to assist those patients who identified needs or who the clinic was unable to contact.

Highsmith noted that the physicians volunteered to purchase supplies to take as they visited patient homes. Items patients did not need were donated.

“We had an overwhelming response from our whole family to live out our vision to take great care of our patients and community,” said Dr. Jason Moore, chair of ETSU Quillen College of Medicine’s Family Medicine Department.

“Our whole interprofessional team pulled together: from the front office sorting out patients by location, to nursing doing donations, to the pharmacy team coordinating the efforts, to medical students volunteering to make phone calls, to residents and faculty giving up their wellness time to do home visits,” he said. “It was truly amazing how quickly things came together with a common vision to serve. We had numerous patients in tears, thanking us for what we did.”

Family Medicine is supporting ETSU’s collection of donations and exploring additional ways to help the hardest hit communities, including through partnerships with numerous physician alumni who are established in these areas.

ETSU Health Family Medicine is located at 917 West Walnut Street in Johnson City. For more information or to schedule an appointment, call (423) 439-6464.

With 30 clinical sites and more than 250 healthcare providers, ETSU Health is on the front lines of efforts to improve the health of Northeast Tennessee by offering leading-edge healthcare in dozens of specialties.