Congratulations to Dr. Mindi Garner - Recipient of the Distinguished Service Award!
Launch the media gallery 1 playerCongratulations to GMC's Chief of Staff, Dr. Mindi Garner, one of the three recipients of the Distinguished Service Award given by the Pittsburg State University Alumni Association.
A reception will be held from 2 to 2:45 p.m. on March 5th in the upper level of the Wilkinson Alumni Center, 401 E. Ford, prior to the Apple Day convocation, which will be held at 3 p.m. in the Overman Student Center.
The award was started in 1991. In July 2000, it was renamed the Dr. Ralf J. Thomas Distinguished Service Award in memory of a retired faculty member who volunteered his service to the PSU Alumni Association for 22 years and was the first recipient of the award. This year's Distinguished Service Award recipients have given generously of their time and talent for the betterment of Pittsburg State. They are Dr. Richard Peterson, Frank Naccarato and Dr. Mindi Garner:
Dr. Mindi Garner
Dr. Mindi Garner, DO, FACP, is a board-certified physician of internal medicine who has contributed to the premedical program at Pittsburg State. She grew up in Parsons, Kansas, and graduated from PSU in 1994 with a bachelor's degree in Biology Pre-Medicine.
She graduated from Oklahoma State University College of Osteopathic Medicine in 2000 and completed an Internal Medicine residency at University of Tennessee-Memphis in Memphis, Tennessee, in 2003.
Later that year, Garner opened her Pittsburg clinic — the first and only completely paperless electronic medical record office in the area. She opened a satellite clinic in Girard, Kansas, in 2007, and retains active medical staff privileges at Via Christi Hospital in Pittsburg and Girard Medical Center.
"Dr. Garner has remained intricately tied to the students at PSU by starting a program that allowed her to both mentor pre-medical students and give them the ability to make money with adjustable hours while learning the language and art of medicine," said Dr. Kathleen Sandness, medical director at Pittsburg State's Student Health Services.
Garner sponsors Premeds with Promise, which provides early clinical exposure to premed majors and ultimately better prepared future physicians. Her goal is to provide state-of-the-art health care for the local community while cultivating youth and advance the practice of medicine.
She also identified the need for a coordinated curriculum to help retain students in the health care field, and helped to orchestrate a symposium at the Overman Student Center of speakers from insurance companies, hospitals, electronic medical records, and IT departments.
Additionally, Dr. Garner began her MBA studies in 2014 in the Kelce College of Business.
She and her husband, Kevan Schupbach, have two daughters. Her step-son and step-daughter both attend PSU.
Article adapted from PSU Press and Media