A former Miss Ohio, Spinner has owned and managed the Gentle Care Health Center for two years. The business has a web site, and Spinner does some limited advertising, but she said the majority of her patients found her through word of mouth.
“We try to get the word out, but really I find that women talking to women is the best word of mouth you can get in this business,” Spinner said.
Spinner is a women’s health nurse practitioner, largely focusing on hormone therapy consultations and wellness improvement, among other services.
The job is similar to a family physician in some ways, although the job pays less, and she typically spends more time with patients teaching them about their health. She also does not perform surgery, deliver babies or prescribe narcotic medicine.
While it was initially open three days a week, it is now open four days with extended hours on Wednesdays and sometimes Saturdays.
After working for several years in Columbus, Spinner said she decided to take a chance to own her own business. She settled on Mechanicsburg after she and her husband Scott toured the area on a weekend trip. “Literally, as soon as we pulled onto our farm we felt this was it,” Spinner said.
Starting the business wasn’t easy, she said. Many nights, she slept overnight in the building with her children while waiting for building inspectors to approve permits. She also got to work almost immediately to set up agreements with the insurance companies her patients use the most.
Then, she went out into the community to make contacts and make people aware of her business. It included everything from offering blood pressure screenings at the local church and speaking at public meetings.
“Anybody who invited me to come speak, I would go,” Spinner said.
Yvonne Yetter, a certified medical assistant who has worked with Spinner for years, said that work paid off by making patients feel more comfortable during their appointments.
Because of its size and potential patients, there are few places for village residents to go to seek medical help. Female patients previously had to drive to Urbana or Springfield for treatment before Gentle Care opened.
“They feel very blessed to have Ellen here and to have a relaxed, warm environment where they can be listened to,” Yetter said.
Spinner loves the work, but she said it’s something she has to work to continually improve. She said for other prospective business owners, her advice is that it will only work by committing to the project completely.
“Pour your heart and soul into it,” Spinner said. “You can’t go at it with anything less than 100 percent of your resources, physical and emotional ones.”
Still, Spinner said the community, and her business, have been a perfect fit so far. She said she hopes to continue to improve her business a little each year.
“That’s my intent,” she said. “This is what I’d like to retire doing when I’m 80.”
Contact this reporter at (937) 328-0355 or msanctis@coxohio.com.
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