Estrellita Redmon, MD, officially took over as president of Phoebe Physicians on Monday, assuming leadership of Phoebe’s group of providers made up of more than 900 employees, including 180 physicians and 170 advanced practice providers. 

“Part of what attracted me to Phoebe is its mission, vision and values.  I really connected with the vision, ‘to make every life we touch better,’” Dr. Redmon said.  “I believe when we’re delivering care, it should be very patient-centered, and we should certainly seek to make every patient’s life better.  I appreciate Phoebe’s commitment to that vision.” 

The Florida native knew at the age of 12 that she wanted to be a physician.  She earned a pharmacy degree from Florida A&M University before attending the University of Florida College of Medicine, completing her residency in internal medicine at the University of Virginia affiliated hospitals and working as a primary care physician in Florida. 

“I really wanted to focus on preventive medicine, and I enjoyed the relationships I built and the continuity in patient care I was able to provide by seeing patients year after year,” Dr. Redmon said. 

For the last 15 years, she has focused mainly on administration, earning a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Florida and most recently serving as Chief Clinical Officer for a large health system, overseeing care provided by 900 providers at 250 clinical sites from northeast Florida to Alabama. 

“I enjoyed being able to affect care for more than just patients in one practice – truly being able to improve care for thousands of people.  Now, I’m looking forward to moving to a smaller community where I can have a greater impact on the community and the care we deliver throughout the region,” Dr. Redmon said.

Many hospitals outsource inpatient medicine and emergency medicine services.  Dr. Redmon appreciates that, at Phoebe, hospitalists and emergency physicians are employed by Phoebe Physicians.  “One of the things that is exciting to me is that Phoebe Physicians supports all the functions of the hospital.  That results in better coordination of care, and it also makes it easier to implement actions to improve the quality of care and patient safety,” she said. 

Dr. Redmon has been married to Gregory Redmon, an elder law attorney, for 35 years, and they have two children and two grandchildren.  Their son, Victor, is a second-year cardiology fellow, and their daughter, Carissa, is a second-year urology resident, both at the Medical College of Wisconsin.

Dr. Redmon is also a published author, having written a memoir about her son’s battle with leukemia called Victors Over Leukemia and a novel about a physician serving his rural hometown called The Heart Always Knows.

Even though she has served in administrative roles in recent years, she has maintained her board certification in internal medicine, and she plans to be an active member of Phoebe’s medical staff.  “I want to stay up to date with the practice, treatments and preventive aspects of internal medicine and be able to treat patients, particularly if I can help with community health and outreach efforts,” she said. 

Dr. Redmon takes over from Dr. Suresh Lakhanpal who retired after 18 years at Phoebe.  She is excited to be part of the Phoebe Family and looks forward to leading efforts to improve access to quality healthcare for all southwest Georgians.  “Phoebe is exactly where I’m supposed to be.  It’s a system that works for all, and we’re excited about being part of this community.”