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The Town of Havana is in dire need of a medical doctor: 'We're being flooded with phone calls'

doctor putting on rubber gloves for an examination against the background of a gynecological chair.
KALINOVSKIY/Evgeniy Kalinovskiy
/
stock.adobe.com
A picture of a physician putting on medical gloves.

Officials hope the position will be filled by December.

  • Dr. Mark Newberry is hanging up his medical coat after working for more than 30 years as the town’s only primary care physician.
  • Havana's Mayor Eddie Bass told WFSU Newberry is retiring at the end of the year.
  • He leaves 2,000 patients in Havana and South Georgia without a licensed physician.

    See full press release below:

BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Doctor Mark Newberry of Havana is hanging up his medical coat after working for more than 30 years as the town’s only primary care physician.

Havana Mayor Eddie Bass told WFSU on Tuesday that Newberry is retiring at the end of the year—leaving 2,000 patients in Havana and South Georgia without a licensed physician.

Bass said he’s actively searching for someone to take over the role.

“Dr. Newberry did house calls for people, but he ended up stopping that. That was the only service we had for our people, unless you went to the hospital in Quincy, or to the one in Tallahassee," said Bass.

The City of Havana is offering to cover the next doctor’s rent at the town’s medical facility and will supply them with free medical equipment to get it started. But the city will not pay the potential new hire a salary.

Officials hope the position will be filled by December.


We’re all about “keeping it real, keeping it simple, and keeping it local.” We’ll dive into tough topics but also make sure to have some fun along the way.

Adrian Andrews is a multimedia journalist with WFSU Public Media. He is a Gadsden County native and a first-generation college graduate from Florida A&M University. Adrian is also a military veteran, ending his career as a Florida Army National Guard Non-Comissioned Officer.

Adrian has experience in print writing, digital content creation, documentary, and film production. He has spent the last four years on the staff of several award-winning publications such as The Famuan, Gadsden County News Corp, and Cumulus Media before joining the WFSU news team.