DR. WHO
it was all the same people. At that time, it was owned by Jewish
Hospital. In 2012, the practice pulled up roots entirely and became
part of Norton Medical Center, but it still feels the same,” he said.
“All the physicians are the same, all the employees, the patients, all
the same, just under a different name. Many of the patients in our
practice have been with us for more than 50 years.”
In his current position, Dr. Smalley works primarily in the of-
fice in Okolona, with an additional office in Shepherdsville, seeing
patients with various complaints in the outpatient setting, both the
acutely ill and those with long-term chronic ailments. “Kind of birth
to death, all ages, anybody that needs it,” he said. “There’s a lot of
chronic disease management. Almost any kind of illnesses people
have, they come in and we take care of 80%, at least, of the different
kinds of problems people have. What’s tricky is when the chronically
ill become acute: it helps to know our patients as well as we do.”
In addition to seeing patients and performing diagnostic exams,
Dr. Smalley also does minor surgical procedures in the office, such as
removing skin cancers and other dermatological procedures. He also
teaches bedside medicine to medical students and family medicine
residents and serves as a voluntary faculty member at the medical
schools of both University of Louisville and University of Kentucky.
Over the years, Dr. Smalley has seen many changes to the way
that the practice of medicine has evolved, but the biggest impact
by far is the transition to electronic medical records, which he
sees as a double-edged sword. While EMR allow patients to access
their medical data at any time, this also allows the patient access to
their doctor at any time, often creating new round-the-clock tasks
for physicians. However, he says, the major benefit of EMR is that
patient records are all in one place and can be accessed from any
clinic or hospital. He also noted with a laugh, “Plus, if I need to go
back and review something, I can actually read it now.”
While the data management process may have changed over
the years, he appreciates that the patient-physician relationship
remains consistent. “As far as when I go into the exam room and
sit down and talk to somebody, it’s still very low tech,” he said. “The
stethoscope hasn’t changed in a hundred years or more. It’s all very
much the same.”
Outside of the office, Dr. Smalley prioritizes time with his family
above all else. He and his wife Amy have three children, Patrick,
Timothy and Suzy. His wife, Amy, has had many different careers
over the years, working in bookstores and restaurants and even
running a catering business. She now hosts and edits a podcast about
reading called “The Perks of Being a Book Lover” that airs weekly
on Forward Radio WFMP-LP Louisville. The couple has enjoyed
raising their children over the last 20 years and looks forward to
seeing them transition into their own adult lives.
(continued on page 36)
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