After our community health needs assessment in the spring of 2022, Reedsburg Area Medical Center (RAMC) recognized that we needed to expand our behavioral health offerings. In 2023, we were able to hire Dr. Jennifer Fiegel-Newlon, a DNP with specialized training in behavioral health, and Peter Gertonson, D.O., who is a board-certified psychiatrist, to be our medical director. We then were quickly able to hire a child and adolescent child and family therapist. In addition, Dr. Gertonson became clinical adjunct faculty at UW to begin training residents in rural psychiatry.
 
This has allowed the capacity of our program to more than quadruple. We are able to offer both medication management, and therapy, in the rural, underserved areas of Sauk county and are working on not only expanding our current offerings, but on collaboration with neighboring hospitals and clinics to provide consultation services as well.