Medical Care in Oil Country - KXNet - Bismarck/Minot/Williston/Dickinson

Medical Care in Oil Country

Mercy Medical Center and Trinity Health held ribbon cuttings in Williston this week for new health care facilities.

At the same time, a much smaller company was announcing its plans to offer health care services in oil country.

Jim Olson takes us to Watford City where two family nurse practitioners opened a new clinic this week.

(Vonnie Johnson, Family Nurse Practitioner) "When people are sick they want to be seen now, they don't want to wait two weeks."

That's why Vonnie Johnson and Anite Pedersen combined their names - into ANOVA - and put their efforts into opening this new clinic in the heart of oil country - the ANOVA Family Health Center in Watford City.

(Vonnie Johnson, Family Nurse Practitioner) "This was the last thing I wanted to do in my own career - work for myself and own my own business. Anita was just coming out of nurse practitioner school and we realized we had the same idea and I said let's do it."

(Anita Pedersen, Family Nurse Practitioner) "We want to provide for the people in the community."

Both Johnson and Pedersen are Watford City natives and family nurse practitioners. And as of this week, they're both business women operating a health care facility they say is badly needed.

(Anita Pedersen, Family Nurse Practitioner) "Anywhere you go, you're a couple weeks out. And that's at the local clinic or driving 50 miles. Every business is overwhelmed with the oil business."

(Vonnie Johnson, Family Nurse Practitioner) "The needs have really expanded. I worked at a walk in clinic in Williston and saw people coming 100 miles just to get in."

Their new clinic is sandwiched between the Cenex and the Visitors Center on the main drag in Watford City. And they're planning to offer everything from preventive care to care of chronic and acute conditions. Pretty much any medical care short of emergency room services. And, even before they officially opened, they were seeing the demand.

(Vonnie Johnson, Family Nurse Practitioner) "People were walking in and we said OK let's just see them. We don't have all our Ts crossed or Is dotted but we can see them."

(Anita Pedersen, Family Nurse Practitioner) "I love this community I grew up in it, I want to see the best for it to grow in a positive way and this is one way we can provide for that by having a new clinic in the area."

In Watford City, Jim Olson, KX News.

The new ANOVA Family Health Clinic officially opened for business Wednesday.