Weixelman changes venues, vows Red Feather return

Janice Weixelman, D.O., is now practicing in Fort Collins but working toward reopening a clinic in Red Feather Lakes.

“My heart remains in Red Feather Lakes, and my desire to have a clinic there continues,” she said.

Weixelman originally opened the clinic in 2004. She partnered with Miramont Family Medicine before financial constraints forced the operation, which had been leasing space from Morning Star Community Church at 168 Main St., to close earlier this year.

“The clinic in Red Feather did not close because it did not have patients,” she said. “It closed because the building would no longer be available at an affordable cost.”

At St. Luke’s Medical Clinic on Oakridge Drive in south Fort Collins, Weixelman works with an old friend and mentor, Michael Lynch, D.O., who is also interested in reopening a clinic in Red Feather Lakes. They both know it won’t be easy, especially in a time of declining Medicare payments, rising costs of living and limited availability of office space.

On the plus side, however, “the population (of Red Feather Lakes) continues to grow,” Weixelman said. “The growth curve in the area has always waxed and waned but the yearly average continues to rise.”

Lynch opened St. Luke’s five years ago with nurse practitioner Trish Lipinski, but Weixelman said she met Lynch when she was a first-year medical student.

“He taught me to listen to the patient and to pay attention to the entire patient, not just the ailment,” she said.

It’s a good partnership.

“St. Luke’s offers the kind of quality care I enjoy while maintaining a smaller team of professionals in a more personal environment,” Weixelman said.

Weixelman said she would also like to expand into health education, teaching “outdoor medical care and first aid to the public as well as to health and emergency care entities.”

Former Red Feather patients can now make appointments with Weixelman by contacting St. Luke’s at 970-223-1199.