Here, care means something more than just care. It’s about looking at our community as an extension of ourselves and treating it as such. It’s what makes our region of the country different: Truly caring for one another. So, it’s no surprise that this region’s health system is made up of the same mentality. Altru exists to care for the health of this community, but that means a lot more than health care.
For Dr. Martin and Allison care is a two-way street. Allison Mertens, or Mrs. Mertens as most know her is a first-grade teacher at Sweetwater Elementary school in Devils Lake, ND. Dr. Candalaria Martin is a family medicine doctor with obstetrics at Altru Clinic in Devils Lake.
“Allison has been my patient along with two of her children for the last four years, and we’ve been able to be fortunate enough to have my two youngest in her first-grade class at Sweetwater,” says Dr. Martin. “She has been a wonderful first-grade teacher.”
Allison has been thankful to have Dr. Martin as her and her children’s doctor.
“My favorite thing about Dr. Martin is how much she cares about my kids,” says Allison. “She cares about them just as much as I do, so it’s easier knowing that she’s just a phone call away and that I’m going to get a quick response because of how much she does truly care for them and their health.”
Both ladies are proud to live in the Devils Lake community. Dr. Martin is always happy to see her patients out and about, whether it is at the grocery store or a school function.
“One of the amazing things about living in a small community and getting to know your patients inside and outside of the clinic is there’s a lot of the questions that the boxes in the medical record don’t capture,” explains Dr. Martin. “The biggest thing is that Dr. Martin and myself both know that we will take care of each other’s children, and at the end of the day, our children are healthy and they’re happy and they’re growing in their health and in their education,” says Allison.
Altru provides care throughout Northeast North Dakota and Northwest Minnesota, with clinics conveniently located in several communities. Find a clinic close to you at altru.org/locations.
