MINOCQUA - The American Red Cross Community Hero Award recognizes one man's commitment to the health and well being of our community members and student athletes.
Dr. Bill Melms treats patients who walk into his urgent care office at the Marshfield Clinic in Minocqua. But his office extends beyond those walls.
Integrity, honesty, and knowledgeable, three words to describe a man you can find at the Marshfield Clinic tending to the urgent needs of the community.
Or you can find him on the sidelines, tending to the urgent needs of our fallen student athletes.
Volunteering his wealth of knowledge on health and well being gathered over twenty-five years of practice. Dr. Melms, Urgent Care Physician at the Marshfield Clinic in Minocqua, has watched from the sidelines going on three years now. "My favorite thing to do on the field is to assess an injury and be able to tell that kid they can get back in the game."
With his expertise, he gives first aid to the bumps, bruises, and breaks the athletes endure. All done on his own free time according to Amber Weldon, Marketing and Public Relations for the clinic. "When you're child is injured and you're a parent on the field, and you're watching what is going on. It makes you feel so much better.
Dr. Melms, however, is very humbled to acknowledged. "I'm very appreciative of the coaching staff allowing me to essentially be part of their staff, and the kids allowing me to be involved in their play."
But on the sidelines is where all of the decisions and game strategies are made.
Sometimes from the coach, sometimes from the players, and even sometimes from Dr. Melms. "The hardest is when I have to tell kids that they can't get back in the game. That's the toughest part of the job."
But when it comes to the health of our student athletes, Dr. Melms isn't afraid to make the right decision. "Let me tell you about an injury that did leave an imprint on my memory. It was our last football game of the season. We were playing Antigo, and we needed to win that game to get in the playoffs. Our quarterback unfortunately got a concussion in the first quarter of the game. I had to take him out of the game at that point. It affected the course of the game. We ended up loosing that game, but I think that we may very well have won that game. The next day, I got an email from his mother thanking me for taking him out of the game. That made me feel like I was doing the right thing. Sometimes things are a little touchy, but there are a lot of injuries."
For this reason, parents and community members trust in his skills. "It's been very gratifying. After twenty five years, this is the most fun that I've had being a physician. I'm enjoying it, I'm hoping to do it for a long time to come."
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