RICHFIELD — Normally, it’s a doctor’s bedside manner that is memorable to a patient.
In this case, the warm welcome that the medical staff at Turnpaugh Health and Wellness Center received during an appearance at Richfield Life Ministries in April eventually led to them expanding to an old Juniata County feed mill.
“Two of our doctors, Dr. Chris Turnpaugh and Dr. Shannon Smith, went up there for a health talk to a church community and it was really well received,” said Heather Turnpaugh, chief operating officer of the Mechanicsburg-based organization. “The people who attended said they wished we would open an office up there because they have nothing like us in the area.”
Their fourth location, formerly the Richfield Feed Mill, is expected to open in January 2023.
Dr. Chris Turnpaugh, one of the medical staff who spoke in Richfield, founded the practice in 1999 after deciding that the Mechanicsburg community deserved a place where patients could go to feel heard and receive the best care possible.
Turnpaugh Health’s goal is to provide compassionate, empathetic care to their patients. They provide their patients with the most comprehensive and individualized care available, so they can experience healing and optimal well-being. Their staff has years of expertise, knowledge of the inter-workings of the human body and real results.
Currently, Turnpaugh operates wellness centers in Mechanicsburg and two locations in Lancaster County, Manheim and Strasburg.
They employee about 30 to 35 employees in Mechanicburg, 15 employees in Manheim and a smaller number in Strasburg.
The Richfield location, which will be housed in a 2,000-square foot space, could have as many as 10 employees.
If it hadn’t been for 15 to 20 patients who travel to other Turnpaugh locations, reaching out on behalf of their families and the community, she admits Richfield wouldn’t have been on their radar.
“We had no plans to open another office and no thoughts about this area,” Turnpaugh explained. “After the talk, people were sending us messages that they’d love to have us come and have a presence in that area.
“It was a natural, organic reason to go up there,” she added.
Turnpaugh heard that the space at the old feed mill was available and thought it was a “really cool space and would be a really great location,” she said.
Turnpaugh said the owners who bought the property polled Richfield residents and nearly one-third stated they wanted a coffee shop. Others wanted an ice cream parlor, bakery, winery and brewery. Nearly a quarter of those polled answered, “other.”
That could include a wellness center.
“That’s why they are renovating the right side for us,” Turnpaugh said.
The other side of the building will house the Old Mill Coffeehouse.
According to the businesses’ Facebook page, the coffeehouse will be arriving “early this fall” and offer a full line of expresso drinks, fruit smoothies, café-style eats and more. An Aug. 11 Facebook post advertised for help.
Prior to renovations starting, “You walk in and it was old and dilapidated,” Turnpaugh said. “It had a really neat hallway that connects the coffee shop to our office and our IV therapy suite. You can look out on the road and see the mountains in the background.”
The social media response to the announcement of their expansion was also overwhelming.
“Our social media announcement about Richfield got the most traction of any of our posts have even gotten,” Turnpaugh said. “That’s why we’re so excited to get up there.”
Turnpaugh Health and Wellness Center specializes in functional and integrative family medicine. Functional medicine addresses the root cause of the disease and doesn’t simply address the symptoms.
Functional medicine is a systems approach to medicine with advanced diagnostic tools. Their goals for your health are to improve how you feel and to improve your lab results as well. Turnpaugh said staff works to help patients achieve their healthiest lives.
“Because of the pandemic, we have a lot of people who come in to maximize their health,” Turnpaugh explained. “They may have underlying conditions they didn’t know they have. We do a full functional medicine evaluation.
“Since the pandemic, we’ve seen more patients come in for overall wellness, anti-aging care, long COVID and ongoing chronic conditions,” she added. “Most of the people we found had an underlying, undetected condition they had prior to getting COVID.”
Turnpaugh’s services also include chiropractic and massage services, IV nutrition therapy, integrative family medicine, nutrition and health coaching, naturopathic medicine and functional psychotherapy.
They’ve already hired familiar faces including Jodi Jordan PA-C, who worked at the former Richfield Family Practice, and IV therapy nurse Tammy Leitzel. Turnpaugh also has Mechanicsburg providers who will travel to Juniata County to see patients a couple of days each month.
“Our business has always been very busy,” Turnpaugh added. “We cannot wait to join the Richfield community.”
https://www.lewistownsentinel.com/news/progress/2022/10/richfield-gets-health-center/