S moke S ignals
FEBRUARY 15, 2017
7
Health & Wellness Center employs two new doctors
By Bethany Bea
Smoke Signals Intern
The Grand Ronde Health & Well-
ness Center has hired two addi-
tional doctors within the last six
months: Dr. Linda Kit, in optome-
try, and Dr. Randy Blome, a family
medicine doctor.
Blome started on Jan. 26 while
Kit has been working at the Tribal
clinic since August.
Health Services Executive Di-
rector Kelly Rowe said she’s very
pleased with both doctors.
“With both these providers it was
apparent that their clinical and
technical skills are top-notch, but
also their demeanor and ability to
relate to patients was clear,” Rowe
said.
Blome, 57, grew up in Ohio and,
after completing medical school and
his residency there, moved to Ore-
gon with his wife and son in 1991.
He worked at a clinic in Sandy for
20 years and came to Grand Ronde
after working at Providence New-
berg Medical Center for the last
five years.
He said he retains a love of small
towns after growing up in mostly
rural areas near Toledo, Ohio, and
said the countryside around Grand
Ronde reminds him of his home
state.
“The Willamette Valley is a lot
like the part of Ohio I’m from,”
said Blome, “but we don’t have the
mountains on either side.”
When he’s not at the clinic, Blome
enjoys spending time in the woods,
hiking and fishing. He said when he
first came to Oregon, he was struck
by the water quality of the rivers.
“All the rivers in Ohio are kind
of brown, muddy rivers that slowly
move through all the farm fields,”
Blome said, “but I love the clean
Photos by Michelle Alaimo
Dr. Randy Blome, a family medicine doctor, started in
the Grand Ronde Health & Wellness Center’s Medical
Clinic on Jan. 26.
rivers out here.”
Blome commutes to Grand Ronde
from Dayton, a round trip of about
60 miles, but years of living in the
Midwest mean he wasn’t bothered
by the recent snow.
“The amount of snow we had a
little bit ago, we had that every day
for three months,” Blome said.
Kit, originally from Baldwin
Park, Calif., said she was prepared
for the snow because she spent a
year on the East Coast doing her
optometry residency at a Veterans
Affairs hospital in Connecticut.
Kit completed her undergraduate
studies at UCLA, then attended
optometry school in Pomona, Calif.
She said her decision to choose op-
tometry developed over a lifetime
of good experiences with her own
eye doctors.
“I’ve been wearing glasses since
I was in the second grade,” Kit, 29,
said, “and all of my optometrists
have been really friendly, too, and
that’s something that I value, and
I want to be the type of optome-
trist that will also be there for my
patients.”
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Gymnasium-
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Facilities
Manager
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(Harris Reibach)
(Holly T.)
(Tyson M.)
503-879-1369
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Dr. Linda Kit has been working as an optometrist in the
Grand Ronde Health & Wellness Center’s Optometry
Department since August 2016.
Kit was working in private prac-
tice in Seattle when the opportunity
to apply at Grand Ronde arose.
She said she was eager to practice
optometry in a Tribal clinic because
there are eye issues that are com-
mon in Tribal communities, such as
glaucoma and diabetic eye diseases.
“Any patients who have diabetes,
we always want them to come in,”
Kit said, “whether it’s been one or
two years, or you’ve never had an
eye exam.”
Kit was awarded a fellowship
with the American Academy of Op-
tometry at its annual meeting held
in November 2016. She said the
type of doctors the academy looks
for when awarding fellowships are
those who are passionate about
staying current on advancements
in the field. This way, she said, pa-
tients can feel confident that they
are getting the best information
and options available.
Rowe said having a doctor with
that type of recognition available
for Tribal members is a great thing.
“That’s exciting to know that we
have a doctor of that caliber here,”
said Rowe.
Blome said he decided to go into
family medicine because he loves
working with people of all ages,
especially children. He said he’ll
take time when a child is visiting
for the first time to ensure that they
feel comfortable.
“I love dealing with kids,” Blome,
who has a 4-year-old granddaugh-
ter, said. “I found if I develop a
rapport with a young child like that
and they’re comfortable with me, in
the long run it pays huge dividends
because then they like coming to
the doctor’s office.”
He said a positive difference
about working at the Health &
Wellness Center is that it allows for
strong doctor-patient relationships
compared to larger practices.
“It’s really frustrating to be in
a system where they want you
hurling people in and out every 15
minutes,” said Blome. “I’ve found
Grand Ronde very generous in how
it takes care of people.”
Blome said at his last practice,
appointment times were usually
15 to 30 minutes, but at the Health
& Wellness Center they allow 30
minutes to an hour.
Kit also cited the extra time with
patients as one of the best things
about working in Grand Ronde. She
said at previous offices, a typical
eye appointment would be 30 min-
utes, but now she’s with a patient
for an hour.
“I feel like there’s so much more
time to get to know the patient, to
understand what they need and
what they want coming in to the
exam,” Kit said.
Rowe said she agrees that the
Tribe’s clinical setting can be dif-
ferent from other practices and a
doctor who enjoys that difference
is a good fit. She said what Health
Services looks for in applicants is
a desire to be a part of the team
in a professional sense, but also
a desire to get to know the Tribal
membership as people.
She said the fact that many em-
ployees are also Tribal members
adds to the strong sense of family
at the clinic.
“There’s always the sense of com-
munity,” said Rowe. “So we try to
identify providers that recognize
that and don’t just respect it, but
support it and become a part of
it.”
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