Mission Accomplished: Expanded Care at E. Blair Warner Family Medicine Center

Dale Patterson, MD, Memorial Family Medicine Residency Program Director, knew it was the right thing to do for our community –– and that was to expand the E. Blair Warner Family Medicine Center to provide quality care for more people.

Dale Patterson, MD

Ken Elek, MD

Because the Affordable Care Act has enabled more Americans to get health insurance, more people are accessing regular medical care, including at E. Blair Warner Family Medicine Center where a sliding fee scale based on income makes health care more affordable. This has led to an increase in the number of patients seen at the facility located at 714 N. Michigan St. in South Bend.

And when you have more patients, you need more space and staff. The space has come in the form of a 13,500-square-foot expansion, nearly doubling the size of the facility. The project added 10 new exam rooms, patient-care areas, a simulation room to help with training and radiology services for the growing patient base. The improved layout allows patients to receive care more efficiently, and with additional exam rooms, more patients can be seen to get the care they need, when they need it.

“It’s a direct example of our mission, which is to take care of people and take care of their health,” says Kreg Gruber, chief operating officer of Beacon Health System.

The E. Blair Warner Family Medicine Center is staffed by physicians being trained as part of Memorial Family Medicine Residency Program. The three-year residency program includes up to 30 physicians who are overseen by a medical faculty of 14 experienced physicians. Eight residents a year has grown to nine, with plans to expand to 10.

The family medicine residency program serves as a recruitment pipeline for Beacon Medical Group, the largest physician group in the region. Interestingly, about 40 percent of family medicine physicians at Memorial Hospital, and 47 percent at Beacon Medical Group, are residency program graduates.

“The expansion allows the residency program to remain at the forefront of physician education and a leader among family medicine residencies,” says Dr. Patterson.

Thanks to the following for their important contributions to the expansion:

• Vickie Alber
• Larry Lies
• Mark Zakowski
• IT team