Couple fills need, expands family practice in rural Rockbridge County

GLASGOW (WSLS 10) -- There's no stop light in the town of Glasgow, but there is a family practice. It's one of only a few in the county not run by a hospital.

Maury River Family Practice is home to two physicians; a husband and wife who moved there 12 years ago to be closer to family.

"We noticed in the newspaper that this community was losing its family doctor, so we took that as a good sign that we were moving in the right direction," said Dr. Jane Sailer.

Doctors Jane and Jay Sailers took over in 2004. Their practice has grown every year.

"We're definitely in need of more room to meet the capacity of the patients we're seeing here," she said.

The Sailers recently added two nurse practitioners. They're now working on an even bigger expansion, a new building that will allow them to double the number of exam rooms and accommodate more patients who may not have easy access out of town.

"Lexington is 17 miles over and over a mountain in one direction and I think there's one family doctor over in Big Island, but Lynchburg would be the next step. Or Roanoke down 81 would be the next step."

The goal is to provide personalized care in a patient's own community. It's the reason this team still makes house calls.

"Access is a very important thing to us and when people can't see a doctor, we want to know why and we want to know if we can help," Jane Sailers said. "Sometimes that does mean house calls for the frail or elderly who have difficulty getting in here."

Two doctors paving the road to access and good health for their patients.