NATCHEZ — If you’ve received medical care in town during the last year, you were a tally mark in the right direction for a group of area health care leaders.

But for each tally mark you made, your neighbor likely added one in the other column — out-of-town care.

Long before the Miss-Lou Regionalism health care sub-committee formed a little more than a year ago, the goal to keep more residents at home for medical care existed.

In fact, it’s been a concern of doctors, hospitals and the business community for a decade or more, dating back to pre-tort reform days when doctors fearing lawsuits fled the area, said Sarah Smith, chair of the health care committee.

The closure of International Paper and other major industries reduced the population of people and doctors.

“Natchez used to be seen as a hub to the smaller towns in the area,” Smith said. “Later on, it wasn’t seen that way, and people went to larger towns.”

So when the health care committee put goals on paper shortly after its formation, one of the most important ones was raising the number of area residents who received health care at home.

A year into their efforts, tracking process isn’t as easy as counting tally marks in two columns.

“I don’t think it’s an overnight deal,” Smith said. “It’s going to take time to change perception.”

Recruiting doctors

Natchez Regional Medical Center CEO Bill Heburn says the community won’t see significant increases in the number of patients receiving care in the Miss-Lou until the number of physicians increases.

“The number of physicians was (once) in the high 70s at both hospitals,” Heburn said. “Now we have 39 on staff here.”

Both Natchez Regional and Natchez Community Hospital are working to bring more doctors to town, and have made positive steps in the last two years, the CEOs said.

General surgeon Dr. Hendrik Kuiper, general and vascular surgeon Dr. Jay Patel and orthopedic surgeon Dr. Jeffrey Traina joined the local medical community in late 2009 and early 2010.

Cardiologist Dr. Brad LeMay opened his Natchez practice in the spring of 2010, and Natchez Regional opened its heart catheterization lab a few months later, providing care to many patients who were previously leaving town, Heburn said.

“Our goal was to do 300 caths in the first year,” he said. “In five months, we’ve done 115. We should be pretty much at our goal.”

Dr. Ruth Darg opened a family medicine practice, and Dr. Beverly Love is a new obstetrician/gynecologist in town.

Natchez Regional is currently recruiting two more family practitioners and a urologist, Heburn said. A new OB/GYN will join the hospital in the fall, too.

Smith, formerly the director of physician relations and education at Promise Hospital, will begin a new job this week at Natchez Regional as director of physician relations and recruitment. Heburn said having someone focused on doctor recruitment was the “lifeblood” of the hospital.

Natchez Community CEO Donny Rentfro said the hospital constantly evaluates the need for new physicians and has also identified the need for an additional OB/GYN.

“Yes, there is still a need for additional physicians,” Rentfro said. “But you want to ramp up those you have so each can become established.”

It’s important for the community to realize that, despite a smaller number of local doctors than in previous years, the majority of health needs can be met in town, Rentfro said.

“Just in generalities, 80 percent of health care needed is available in Miss-Lou,” Rentfro said. “Very good care.”

The exceptions to that include neurosurgery, cardiac surgery and neonatal intensive care.

Education

The second step in the battle is one of providing information, Smith said.

Many residents leave town for health care because they don’t think they can get it at home, she said.

The committee hopes to be a conduit for information to the contrary through a variety of outlets. Currently, the group is preparing for a 5K run/walk this month aimed at promoting a healthy lifestyle, bringing attention to the area health care providers and raising money to fund future projects.

The group hopes to raise enough in funding to fuel a health fair in the fall that would include multiple educational booths about medical services provided here and put local doctors in the spotlight so the community can get to know them.

Other plans include creating an online medical directory and linking physicians up with civic groups, schools and more to provide that needed education.

Such education is needed, Rentfro said, because it’s human nature not to want to study up on medical services before they are needed, because doing so means thinking about being sick or injured.

“The average community resident doesn’t want to have to use health care,” he said.

Rentfro, who frequently attends the regionalism group’s meetings, said he believes the committee is moving in the right direction.

“Educating the community as to what services are available, through a doctor’s or specialist’s office, or the various services we have collectively across four hospitals in the Miss-Lou, is needed,” he said.

“The doctors that practice in our community, they went to the same medical schools, passed the boards as those in the big cities. We really can take care of a lot of patients.”