SHS Grad Returns Home to Hamilton County Hospital

by Krista Norton | August 21, 2025

Jessica King, daughter of Patty King of Garden City and Reg King, Lakin, has returned to her roots to continue to provide physical therapy for Hamilton County Hospital. King was a 1997 SHS graduate.
While in high school she shadowed a physical therapist from Tribune. “I guess that is what led me down this path.” 
She also she took advantage of being in all sports in school, “There was not a lot to do but being on those teams, the consistency of going to practice, even in the morning, the team meetings, all the things you have to do in sports.”  She felt this helped her a lot in school, especially how to manage her time. 
After graduation, she attended Kansas State University, obtaining her bachelors degree, before entering physical therapy school at Wichita State University, graduating in 2004. 
She returned to western Kansas to work at Sandhill Orthopedic with Dr. Baughman, in Garden City. “Orthopedic and sports medicine, right up my alley, I loved it,” she said. 
After he was killed in a car accident, she commuted and worked as the Director of Rehabilitation in Scott City for  nearly eight years.  
During that time, she became pregnant with her son Hudson and no longer wanted to commute with an infant, so she began working at Saint Catherine Hospital in Garden City. 
After 13 years as Director of Outpatient Med/Surge (medical surgery), managing the clinic in Ulysses, Garden City and helping supervise the one in Dodge City, she began feeling overwhelmed with responsibility and time commitment. 
“St. Catherine was getting so big, and I felt I needed a break. The corporate structure is a lot of responsibility, and I was looking for a way to spend more time with my son,” she explained.  
But, some changes were made in her position, so she decided to stay. After a year she began to feel like she was back in the same place.  
Jessica explained she was involved with the Pioneer Health Network, as was former Physical Therapist Cameron Jackson, when they learned Jackson might be leaving HCH. She had explored the possibility of working at HCH about a year ago, 
It was when Jackson resigned that the Carter Group reached out to her and asked if she could provide interim coverage. When they called, I felt like I could help keep the doors open,” she said, “I worked a couple days a week, doing evaluations, updating plans of care to keep them going.”
She felt a pull to HCH and the community where she grew up, “I had seen a lot of people I knew while working in Garden and I knew the PT Department was vital to the community.” 
“Also, there were physical therapy assistants working there and without a Physical Therapist to supervise, and establish plans of care, they would have to close the doors,” said Jessica. 
But at the time, she had a lot of commitments so Jessica decided to work as a consultant over the summer to see if she could make the schedule work.
Her mom, Patty King, HCH nurse, gave her good advice, “You have all kinds of time to work, but you need to find a position where you can do your job, be good while you are there, and it doesn’t have to go home with you every night!”
As it got busier, she came three times a week and toward the end of summer, she felt like they were making good progress, “So I came on as an employee three times a week the first part of August and now we have a waiting list to get in.” 
“The Carters have been wonderful to me, caring about me more as a person, more than just a provider, and Kelly (hospital administrator) has been wonderful,” said Jessica, “I have dealt with a lot of CEOs and I will take this any day!” 
Her decision to resign from St. Catherine’s did not come easily.  “I had worked hard the past thirteen years and you want to leave things better than you found them, so I had to get the right transition set up before I left.”
“And I left them in good hands!” she said proudly, “Some of you may remember Nicole (Reyes) Navarro, who used to be the physical therapist here at Hamilton County Hospital!”
“She is doing wonderful, she has a big job now, handling three different areas, Ulysses, Garden City, and Dodge in addition to being in charge of acute rehab.” Adding, “I feel more confident in it now that we have her in place.”
“Coming to Syracuse, I did not walk into a job that needed rebuilding, Cameron did a great job,” she said, “It was very well run, and he has been super good about responding with my questions.” 
There are still three familiar faces in the department, full time PTA, Rita Velasaco and two part time PTAs Jordan Gonzalez and Brittany Sexson, who work with Greeley County Hospital and provide services at HCH.  “These girls have been great!” said Jessica, “I came in and did not have to reteach them!” 
The department is fully staffed five days a week. Jessica is in Syracuse for three days but stressed she is available by phone to her PTAs the days she is not in town. “We can do telehealth if needed. I prefer not, but in a pinch, I’ll do it! It’s legal, allowed, but my personal preference is interaction with my patients.” 
While patients can self-refer to the PT department, she can only see them a certain number of visits and if their condition does not improve, will need to refer them to a doctor.
She stressed she is not going to tell someone she can fix a problem they have had for 25 years! “PT is not always fixing something, but learning to adapt or make it work for them now,” she explained, “But you have to be invested in wanting to get better!” 
“I work closely with the providers here, but am limited,” she explained, “I cannot order x-rays, CT, or MRI, but I can recommend them.” 
So far Jessica has felt welcomed by the staff, administration, providers and the community. “I have had good interactions with the providers and Brandee English has been wonderful to work with.”
She is also impressed with the nursing staff, “There is good teamwork, good collaboration, when I ask for a report, I actually get a really good report!”
Her specialties include IASTYM certified, which is soft tissue mobilization using tools to break up soft tissue. She has worked with patients of all ages from little kids in school systems to nursing homes. 
She is also a preferred provider for Southwest Kansas Advanced Orthopedic Associates of Wichita. “This is a large clinic and since I came from that background, I met with the doctors and they said you are it!” she explained, “And now, Syracuse is it!”
“If I don’t know something about a certain diagnosis, I know someone who does, having managed 23 different physical therapists, I have a lot of contacts.”
She also has extensive background in workman’s comp, “A lot of work comp companies will not allow their patients to receive treatment except from their certified providers, and I can help with that.” She feels it is important for patients with injuries to receive treatment locally so they can return to work as quickly as possible.  
“I’m excited we can keep this department open so people can utilize the facility,” said Jessica, “If you don’t want to, fine. I know every small town has their things, but I’m telling the community I am here, I am available to see you, and I will do the best I can if you want to come here.” 
Although she has been gone from Syracuse for a long time, she still feels welcome, “It’s peaceful, a sense of calm, this is where I grew up, it’s what I know.” 
She has recently become aware of a need for Parkinsons treatment. “I am LSVT (Lee Silverman Voice Treatment) BIG Program certified.”
This treatment helps with the mobility of Parkinson’s and maintaining what they have, avoiding the shuffling gate, improving movements so they do not fall. “Helping them be as independent as they can be,” she added. 
She will not be relocating to Syracuse. “My son, Hudson, is entering the eighth grade, in a lot of sports, especially baseball and has a great group of friends.” 
“He’s my only child and I don’t want to miss out on anything, and this opportunity allows me to spend more time with him, especially in the evenings,” she said. 
She is thankful for her association with other physical therapists, “They are supportive and have offered to fill in for me when I take a vacation.” 
“It has been fun to be back and see faces of moms and dads of people I graduated with. I have a skill; I get paid, and it’s needed in the area.” Adding,” I see no reason this will not be a lasting commitment for me, and I don’t mind the drive.”
Looking back, growing up in Syracuse, she remembers the many hours of hard work on the family farm. She remembers saying “I will do anything, but I’m not going to come home and run that farm!” She admits she made her son start working on a farm! “I learned a lot about responsibility while working on the farm!”
Additionally, she felt working on the farm helped her pay attention to detail, and aid in her ability to get things done, “If we broke something, there was no one around to help fix it, and if we didn’t do something right, we had to do it again.” 
Rural health care, she feels is going to make a comeback, “You and your entire town need to be ready for it. Will that be this year or next year? I don’t know, but communities need to be ready and embrace it.” 
She feels providers are frustrated with corporate medicine, wanting to get back to smaller environments where their opinion matters and they are valued as a provider and a professional.
This is true for her sister Julie, an MD at the hospital in Garden for over ten years and is now entering primary care in Hugoton. “There are providers out there, get your message out!”
“My advice is that this community has a good community hospital. Is it the prettiest? No!  Does it need some repairs? Yes! It could use a lot! So, if someone is sitting on a couple million dollars, go ahead and bring it in!” she laughed. 
“It doesn’t have to be the fanciest, but it’s the people who are putting in their energy and their time every day trying to make it work.”  She is proud that she has been met with just as good of providers here as in a bigger facility. 
“When they announced I was coming back, two board members reached out to me and thanked me,” she said, “That was nice, a board member who cares about their facility. You don’t find that in the bigger facility.”
“You have no idea how bad a situation can get in a health system, corporate medicine is not always the answer,” said Jessica. 
She encourages the community to foster what they have, protect it, and as a community, make sure it survives. “The answer is not always bigger and better.”