Kelly Fletcher, MD, has joined the team of family medicine providers at Upper Great Lakes Hancock Family Health Center (UGL) – Family Practice.
Fletcher is originally from Texas but has spent the last 10 years living in Arkansas and recently relocated to the U.P. to begin working at UGL.
Initially, Fletcher graduated college with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration and worked in telecommunications for 5 years before the urge to practice medicine drew her back to school. She attended the University of Sint Eustatius in Sint Eustatius, NA (located in the Caribbean) where she received her Doctor of Medicine Degree and then completed her residency at the University of Arkansas in Texarkana, AR.
Since completing her studies, Fletcher has practiced medicine for 11 years.
She truly enjoys being a doctor and likes being able to help patients achieve their best quality of life. Dr. Fletcher has a unique understanding of the patient aspect of medicine as she herself has undergone treatment for and overcome a serious illness over the last 2 years.
“I feel like being a patient has made me more in-tune with the feelings and needs of my patients,” says Dr. Fletcher. “I believe there is no better teacher of empathy than having experienced some of the very things my patients are going through. That common experience creates a bond much deeper than the typical doctor-patient relationship.”
Quality of life is not just based on treating medical conditions.
Fletcher believes that the condition of the mind plays a tremendous role in the well-being of the patient. Often, patients with chronic medical issues can develop conditions like anxiety and depression, and she believes it is important to screen and treat these conditions as they can be barriers to disease management.
Fletcher and her spouse have three children, ages 5, 9, and 14, as well as four cats and two dogs. They are enjoying the area and how friendly people in the U.P. are and, as a bonus, her children love the snow.
In her free time, Fletcher enjoys crafts, sewing, and traveling.
UGL’s Hancock Family Health Center is located at 500 Campus Drive, Hancock, MI.
To schedule an appointment with Kelly Fletcher, MD, call 906-483-1060.
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