Community
LEXINGTON VA HEALTH CARE SYSTEM: PRIMARY CARE Mark Swisher, MD
Dr. Mark Swisher holds the position of chief of primary care at the Lexington VA Health Care System. Primary Care serves veterans with two clinics, women’s health, a homeless outreach clinic and four community clinics located in Hazard, Morehead, Berea and Somerset. The Lexington VA Health Care System employs fully integrated Patient Aligned Care Teams with primary care consisting of nursing, administration, clinical pharmacy, psychology and social work to achieve the highest quality care for veterans through collaboration. This collaboration is why Dr. Swisher works at VA, “Seeing positive results arise for our veterans due to strong clinical teams’ efforts is the most rewarding part,” he says. Dr. Swisher, whose father served in World War II, says primary care places a unique emphasis on health promotion/disease prevention, health behavior support, nutrition and transition from the military, and is now using telehealth, called VA Video Connect, to treat Veterans in rural areas. Dr. Swisher relaxes by enjoying his new grandbaby, taking in the pleasures of rural life and beekeeping. 859.233.4511 • va.gov/lexington
LEXINGTON VA HEALTH CARE SYSTEM: MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES Autumn McCane, PhD
Dr. Autumn McCane, PhD, serves a very key purpose at the VA Hospital. As the Chief of Mental Health Services, she helps Veterans needing mental health care. Despite increasing awareness, Dr. McCane says that mental health still carries a stigma, which presents one of the greatest challenges in her field. Her department offers highly specialized treatment for a wide range of mental health issues including Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and addiction services. The most valuable part of her work is seeing Veterans regain confidence and purpose and embracing the VA’s mission “to serve those who have borne the battle.” In her spare time, Dr. McCane says she enjoys raising her three small children. As a working mom in a demanding profession, her personal secret to balance is simply “letting some things go.” 859.233.4511 • va.gov/lexington
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TOPS Magazine | July 2018
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