Current Professionals

West Plains

This is a wonderful teaching environment for medical students. Students are provided a thorough orientation to Ozarks Medical Center, security access codes, free meals at the Medical Center, and access to all library services. Thirty-five of the 75 medical staff members (approximately 46 percent of hospital physicians) serve as community preceptors hosting students for clinical rotations. The Ozarks Medical Center Medical Library offers four computer terminals with Internet, word processing, power point design, textbooks, and medical journals for students. Continuing Medical Education, as well as ACLS, PALS, etc., are also offered to medical students at no charge. In addition, access to article/journal research is available, as well as access to sites such as Up-to-Date.com. All services provided to students are complimentary. AHEC student housing is available for short term rotations.

Students at this site are also offered optional off-site training opportunities in Kennett, Farmington, Sikeston, and Poplar Bluff. These are not mandatory rotations and students who self-select for these experiences are provided free on-site AHEC housing during these rotations. For information on these sites, visit www.missouridelta.com, www.poplarbluffregional.com, www.twinriversregional.com.

Ozarks Medical Center

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100 North Kentucky Street
West Plains, MO 65775

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417.257.6714

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  • Medical Staff 75
  • Size of Hospital 114 beds
  • Admits 5,991
  • Surgeries 3,486
  • Deliveries 686
  • ER Visits 17, 232

West Plains is nestled in the “Heart of the Ozarks” and offers breathtaking scenery and a wealth of recreational activities. You can also pick up the pace at one of the finest dirt track facilities in the nation. The West Plains Motor Speedway’s premier event is the “Show Me 100,” where late model drivers from across the country compete to start the Memorial Day weekend race. The season begins mid-March and runs through August with events for crowds as large as 17,000. People also come from miles away to attend concerts and family activities at the West Plains Civic Center. With 30,000 square feet of exhibit space, 7,400 square feet of meeting rooms, a 2,900-seat arena and a 450-seat theater, there’s certainly room for everybody. The center boasts a collegiate-sized swimming pool, hot tub, sauna, and a professionally designed fitness room. The state-of-the art Civic Center hosts expos and conventions, athletic events, stage shows, and performing arts theatre. It has developed a solid reputation for staging quality family entertainment and cultural events. For more information about West Plains, visit their website at www.wpchamber.com/index.html.

Average cost of housing
Rental units range from $450-$650/month.  Average housing costs range from $100,000 to $150,000, although smaller nice homes can be found for under $90,000

Nearest major airport
Springfield Regional Airport (SGF) is approximately 100 miles from West Plains

Nearest expressway
I-44 is approximately 100 miles from West Plains

Informational websites – www.westplains.net

Keep in mind that most rotations are preceptor-based, so the schedule will vary somewhat for every rotation.

Medical students may be expected to pre-round before the attending gets to the hospital. There are no residents or interns at Ozarks Medical Center, so the student will be expected to do many of the H & Ps as well as progress notes. Because of this, students should plan on pre-rounding between 6 and 7 a.m.  Periodically, this will be followed by a physician’s group meeting. Medical students should attend these meetings as things such as call schedules, patients, and chart reviews are discussed. Afterwards, the student will round with the attending physician. From there, the student will either move on to the daily clinic, the OR, or the endoscopy suite for the rest of the morning. Usually there is time to take a lunch break at or around noon, but this can be easily interrupted by deliveries, long surgeries, or late clinic schedules. The attendings in West Plains are very good about making time for a break though, no matter what the schedule dictates.

Students may be expected to give presentations, case reports, or discuss journal articles over the noon hour as well. Occasionally, there will be drug rep lunches or seminars by other doctors over lunch that students will have the opportunity to attend. The afternoon is much like the morning schedule, where the student will see patients in the clinic or OR until 5-5:30 p.m., followed by evening rounds with the attending. Some attendings will excuse students early from clinic so that they can pre-round before the attending.

Medical students should expect to take call at least one week/weekend during the rotation. In general, the call schedule is much like the rest of the week, and rounding is usually done with the attending instead of pre-rounding. Some rotations have a heavier call schedule than others; therefore, students may be required to work two or more weekends a month for certain rotations.

Student feedback regarding site

“The clinical rotations at West Plains are top notch. The physicians at the hospital and surrounding clinics are fantastic teachers. All rotations are one-on-one with the physician, so the clinical experience is excellent. I was able to perform all procedures with the physician looking over my shoulder, patiently instructing. The hands-on experience you will receive is invaluable and for those reasons, I highly recommend West Plains.”

Click the following link for a printable version of this site’s information:  West Plains

Getting our students started

If you are interested in SEMO AHEC and want to discover all our resources have to offer, click below to contact one of our team members.

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When are site
visits scheduled?

Site visits can be scheduled at almost any time except during holidays.

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Who should students contact to set up a site visit?

Please contact Ashley Showalter, Clinical Rotations Coordinator, ashley.semoahec@gmail.com 618-306-1982

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What is the site visit
protocol at your site?

Students must contact the site coordinator at least two weeks before the planned visit. The site coordinator will make arrangements and let students know who/when/where to meet. Any requests made less than two weeks in advance will be considered, but may not be able to be arranged due to time constraints.