Dr. Edwards named Iowa Family Physician of the Year

Dr. Patrick Edwards, family practice physician at Newton Clinic, has been named the 2013-14 Iowa Family Physician of the Year by the Iowa Academy of Family Physicians. The presentation was made at the IAFP Annual Meeting Installation and Awards Banquet on Friday, Nov. 1 at the Prairie Meadows Event Center in Altoona.

The Iowa Family Physician of the Year award is presented to one outstanding physician in the state who best exemplifies the tradition of the family doctor and who epitomizes the finest standards of family health care. One of Dr. Edwards’ patients had this to say about him: “You know immediately he hears what you are telling him and that he cares about your concern or fear. You no longer feel you are a number but a human being whose pain will be diagnosed and remedied. Words cannot describe the relief this assurance brings.”

This sentiment is echoed by Dr. Edwards’ professional cohorts.

“I am honored to count Dr. Edwards as a friend and a colleague,” said Dr. Paul Ruggle.  “He works so hard to take care of his patients and answer every single question they pose. He is well read and physically active, now taking on mountain climbing after running more than a dozen marathons. Jasper County’s gem has now been recognized state-wide with this prestigious award.”

“Dr. Edwards is a treasured asset for his patients, his partners at Newton Clinic and his colleagues at Skiff Medical Center,” said Mark Thayer, Newton Clinic administrator.  “Dr. Edwards’ commitment to the betterment and well-being of his patients is second to none.  We are lucky to have Dr. Edwards in our practice and community.”

As the Iowa Family Physician of the Year, Dr. Edwards will become Iowa’s nominee to the American Academy of Family Physicians for the 2015 National Family Physician of the Year.

“I feel very honored to be nominated for this award by one of my patients,” said Dr. Edwards, “and proud that my peers in family practice in Iowa have agreed.  My practice in Jasper County with Newton Clinic has been very rewarding and I look forward to many more years of service.”

Dr. Edwards attended The University of Notre Dame and Creighton University.  He received his medical degree from the University of Iowa College Of Medicine. He completed a family medicine residency at Broadlawns Family Medicine Residency Program in Des Moines.  He has practiced at Newton Clinic since 1987.  He sees both family practice and obstetrics patients, and is one of six physicians who deliver babies at Skiff Medical Center.  He is also active in his community, school district and church.

“Dr. Edwards is a tremendous resource for his clinic, our hospital and this community,” said Skiff CEO Steve Long.  “We count ourselves incredibly blessed to have him among our extraordinarily talented caregivers.”

Dr. Edwards and his colleagues, as family physicians, are trained in many areas of medicine, including pediatrics, geriatrics, internal medicine, psychiatry, surgery, obstetrics, gynecology and community medicine. This gives them the capability to treat more than 85 percent of all illnesses found in children and adults.

The Iowa Academy of Family Physicians has more than 1,500 members and is a constituent chapter of the American Academy of Family Physicians, which is the largest medical specialty society in the United States, with a membership of more than 86,000 family physicians, family medicine residents and medical students.