Ava native Dr. Benjamin Rathert a good fit for REA Clinic in Du Quoin, wants to see rural America thrive and hates it when a doctor says 'I don't do that'

You're going to like Dr. Ben Rathert. Period.

His deep voice, energy and intelligence quickly gets you past his youth, and the mid-course correction he made from civil engineering to medicine is good for Du Quoin and certainly good for the REA Clinic.

He will complement the work of Dr. Patrick Riley and others at the clinic, and the opening of his practice at REA is well-timed after Dr. Andy Yochum and PA Michael Poiter made the decision to transfer their practices to the Carbondale area.

His work in Du Quoin began July 15.

"I attended U of I and went into civil engineering," says Dr. Rathert, who grew up in Ava, a small town with the same values we have in Du Quoin.

"I've always had a head for math, but I also wanted to help people," he said.

"I went back home and talked to my parents. It was either the ministry or be a doctor," he said. "I decided to be the small town doc," he smiles.

"Small towns aren't dying, not if I can help it."

There's a love of life and a determination in his voice.

"Rural health is everything. I deliver babies (through Memorial Hospital in Carbondale)."

"It's getting scary. Where are the people to deliver babies?" he said.

He does many of the mainstream healthcare procedures himself.

"I hate it when a doctor says (about anything) 'I don't do that'," in defiance of what seems to have become the norm in healthcare.

"I got lucky with good doctors" that Dr. Rathert studied alongside. "You get confident in what you do."

He and wife Nikki--a history major whom he met while in school--have a 1-year-old son, Henry.

The Ratherts have purchased what was the Sue Ford or Ronna Martin home on East Perry Street in Du Quoin, a great house with a great history of family.

"My parents are over in Ava and it's good to have family nearby," he said.

He has a vested interest in Southern Illinois. "I want to see this area thrive," he insists.

He goes so far as to ask how businesses downtown are doing and what families here need.

In a word, he's one of us and that's a good thing. He looks forward to working alongside Dr. Patrick Riley, Jill Wilson-family nurse practitioner, and Physician Assistant Heather Rice.

Dr. Rathert is the son of Tom and Kathy Rathert. Dr. Rathert and sister, Carrie, grew up in Ava. "There are a lot of us named Rathert over there."

With his plan firmly in place to return to his roots, in 2006 he was the recipient of the Illinois Department of Public Health Scholarship, awarded to students planning to enter general practice and committed to serving established areas of need in Illinois.

Dr. Rathert's education comes via the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in molecular and cellular biology in 2006; from 2006-2010 he earned his M.D. from the University of Illinois College of Medicine, in Rockford followed by a residency in Family Medicine at the University College of Medicine at Peoria - Methodist Hospital from 2010-2013. Throughout his education, Dr. Rathert took on numerous leadership roles and actively participated in healthcare organizations and efforts such as the peer mentor program, pediatric outreach clinic for the under-served, Hospice, and the Quality Improvement Project at the University Primary Care Clinic in Mt. Morris, Ill. to name a few.

Specializing in family medicine and obstetrics enables Dr. Rathert to care for patients from birth to 100+. To meet all possible needs and preferences of his patients, he will have affiliations with both Marshall Browning Hospital in Du Quoin and Memorial Hospital of Carbondale.

In his spare time, Dr. Rathert enjoys reading, acting/performing, trivia, playing the guitar & poetry.