Dr. Diamond-Myrsten’s Great Discovery

“I wanted to work somewhere where the patient needs were paramount,” says Dr. Sharon Diamond-Myrsten. “I knew I wanted to be a doctor for as far back as I can remember.” But finding the right place to practice took some searching.
Dr. Diamond-Myrsten was born and raised in New York City. She made the shift south to attend The College of William and Mary for her undergrad degree – in English Literature. She says she “pursued some other loves first,” to be sure the desire to practice medicine would stick. She spent a couple of years teaching as a substitute and another couple as an extension teacher, always working jobs at the low end of the pay school so the money never became a deciding factor (or trap) in her long term career plan. In 1996, she made the leap to pursue medicine, beginning with a second undergrad degree, a BS in Biological Sciences from CNU, and then completed a MS in Biomedical Sciences at Eastern Virginia Medical School (EVMS) the year thereafter. She went on to medical school at EVMS, followed by Family Medicine residency in Lynchburg.
Post-residency she stayed in Lynchburg, working as a 3rd shift Hospitalist (a job she refers to as a “nocturnalist”). Realizing that she felt led toward Primary Care, and that it was “challenging to discuss prevention with a patient at 3 am,” she moved to a hospital-based Family Practice. She liked the work and the on-going patient contact but felt the emphasis was wrong. “It was much more business-focused than patient-focused.” She knew that was not the right “home” for her.

Dr. Diamond-Myrsten began to search for alternative practice options. She saw an internet ad for the Virginia Community Healthcare Association about family medicine practice jobs in community health. She “had never actually heard of community health before, and certainly never thought of it as a career alternative,” prior to seeing the ad and discussing CHC opportunities with the Recruitment Services Team. Dr Diamond-Myrsten knew she wanted to “reach people who otherwise would never be helped, who would never receive healthcare” until there was a crisis, “those who couldn’t get their foot in the door elsewhere,” due to their financial situation. So after discussing opportunities and reviewing a map of community health practice sites, Dr. Diamond-Myrsten and her husband chose Louisa. “Basically we just looked at the map of (Virginia CHC) practice sites, picked a location that was geographically close to family and friends” and ultimately found a great practice match with Central Virginia Health Services (CVHS) at the Health And Wellness Center of Louisa. She has been with them since 2010.

Dr. Diamond- Myrsten was offered the role of Site Director even before she began working at CVHS – which has made for an even more meaningful experience. Her focus not only includes patient care but also the bigger picture view – things like how the site is regarded in the community, community outreach, expansion of service offerings to better meet the community’s needs, and the ideal practice model for Louisa and how to best migrate the site towards it. She says she “never would have pursued a site director role in any other type of practice.” But in community health, that additional responsibility is welcome, allowing her to have an even greater impact on the lives of people in Louisa.

Even given the added duties, most of Dr. Diamond-Myrsten’s work weeks are 40 hours, and there is very little on-call time. Because there is a Pediatrician at the site, she does not see many children. Most of her patients are middle-aged, some are family groups, and a few are older patients. Most are unemployed, as the area has been hit with a significant number of layoffs by small, local businesses.
One of the terrific things about working in community health has been the variety. “No two days have been alike.” Some days are swamped and hectic; others are slow and sometimes even a little too quiet as the practice gains a following in Louisa. Dr. Diamond-Myrsten’ s patient encounters run the gambit from procedures to adult physicals, to acute care as well as chronic care follow-up and overall prevention. One of her greatest frustrations is the lack of complete (re: specialty) care that she can provide to her patients. “Referrals to specialists are expensive and many patients can’t afford it.” So she provides not only primary care but often more specialty care as well.

The biggest downside of community health is that “nobody knows we’re here!” The community is often not aware that they provide healthcare for all, regardless of their financial situation or insurance status, and many in the area do not even know they exist. One of her biggest surprises was sitting on an interagency council with other community resources including social services, local libraries, education personnel, etc. Those resources “didn’t know about the CHC or what it can provide to the community,” says Dr. Diamond-Myrsten. She feels it’s a well-kept secret that needs to be made more evident – not just in Louisa but throughout Virginia and the country.

Some of the unexpected pluses of working in a CHC include a loan repayment award provided through the National Health Service Corps (NHSC), the opportunity to regularly precept medical students, and the terrific team with whom Dr. Diamond-Myrsten has been blessed to work. But the best thing about working in community health is the “warm, fuzzy feeling” she has at the end of each day, knowing she has made a difference.