Nimkee Memorial Wellness Center and MyMichigan Health Announce EMR Partnership
8/12/2025 1:13:00 PM - Public Relations

For Immediate Release
August 4, 2025

Nimkee Memorial Wellness Center and
MyMichigan Health Announce EMR Partnership

MT. PLEASANT and MIDLAND, Mich. – Nimkee Memorial Wellness Center and MyMichigan Health jointly announced a new partnership aimed at integrating Electronic Medical Records (EMR) at Nimkee using MyMichigan’s Epic system. This partnership is part of the Epic Community Connect program, which helps healthcare providers without compatible EMR systems to connect easily. By joining, Nimkee will have improved access to patient records and can place orders and receive care notifications more efficiently, helping to improve service and patient care. The program simplifies access to care, decreases costs and saves time by sharing resources and reducing duplicate tests.

“On behalf of Nimkee Memorial Wellness Center, I would like to express our sincere appreciation to Tribal Council for their continued support and to MyMichigan Health for their valued partnership,” said Karmen Fox, Executive Health Director of Nimkee Memorial Wellness Center. “The implementation of the Epic Community Connect program represents a significant advancement for our community. This initiative will greatly enhance the quality of care we provide by streamlining communication between providers, improving access to vital health information, expanding health care access, and strengthening coordination of care throughout the region.  We are honored to move forward in partnership to enhance the health care for the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe.”

MyMichigan Health, a non-profit health system headquartered in Midland, Michigan, is a leader in providing award-winning, high-quality care to the 26-county region it serves. With Medical Centers in Alma, Alpena, Clare, Gladwin, Midland, Mt. Pleasant, Saginaw, Sault Ste. Marie, Standish, Tawas, Towne Centre and West Branch; MyMichigan Health provides a full continuum of care across a wide array of settings, including urgent care centers, home health, virtual care, as well as medical offices in more than 80 specialties and subspecialties including cardiology, hematology/oncology, orthopedics, vascular surgery, family medicine, pediatrics and more. MyMichigan is affiliated with Michigan Medicine, the academic medical center of University of Michigan.

Nimkee Memorial Wellness Center will be joining a network of hospitals in MyMichigan’s Community Connect program, which include Helen Newberry Joy Hospital and Health System, Mackinac Straits Health System, MidMichigan Community Health Services, and its most recent partner McKenzie Health System.

According to Lydia Watson, M.D., CPE, president and CEO of MyMichigan Health, “We are so pleased to partner with Nimkee Memorial Wellness Center on the EMR program to provide a resource that will benefit their, providers, staff, patients, and community. One of the great benefits of having Epic is the continuity of the medical record between providers at Nimkee Memorial Wellness Center and MyMichigan specialists improving communication between providers for improved care.  I look forward to collaborating and leveraging our combined expertise on quality, performance improvement, operations, and strategy to fulfill our purpose of creating healthy communities together.”

About Nimkee Memorial Wellness Center
The Nimkee Memorial Wellness Center is dedicated to providing comprehensive, holistic healthcare, preventing disease, and promoting wellness among the Native American population. Our medical team offers a full spectrum of services for all ages, from well-baby checkups and school physicals to elder care. We prioritize prevention with yearly health screenings, including cancer screening and general health education, alongside essential immunizations for all ages. For convenience, we provide in-house lab draws. We also offer crucial Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) for individuals struggling with substance abuse. Our commitment to holistic well-being extends beyond medical services, as our staff collaborates closely with other Nimkee and Tribal departments, ensuring coordinated support. For any services not available on-site, we facilitate seamless referrals to outside providers. Nimkee's services are available to members of the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe, their direct descendants, and members of other U.S. Federally recognized Tribes residing in the five-county delivery area: Isabella, Clare, Midland, Missaukee, and Arenac Counties.

Nimkee’s unwavering commitment to quality is powerfully demonstrated by our AAAHC (Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care) accreditation. This prestigious recognition signifies our dedication to continuous improvement in care and services, adhering to rigorous National standards. For the Tribal community, this accreditation offers assurance of our promotion of high-quality health care services and paramount patient safety. Furthermore, this symbol of quality is widely acknowledged and respected by third-party payers, medical organizations, grant organizations, and both state and federal agencies, reinforcing trust and partnership across the healthcare landscape. Our comprehensive departmental structure, encompassing areas like Medical, Dental, Pharmacy, Public Health, Diabetes Program, Healthy Start Program, and our Fitness Center, further underscores our holistic approach to community wellness.

About MyMichigan Health

MyMichigan Health, a non-profit health system headquartered in Midland, Michigan, is a leader in providing award-winning, high-quality care to the 26-counties it serves. With Medical Centers in Alma, Alpena, Clare, Gladwin, Midland, Mt. Pleasant, Saginaw, Sault Ste. Marie, Standish, Tawas and West Branch, MyMichigan also has affiliations with Medical Centers in St. Ignace and Mackinac Island. MyMichigan Health provides a full continuum of care across a wide array of settings, including urgent care centers, home health, virtual care, as well as medical offices in more than 80 specialties and subspecialties including cardiology, family medicine, hematology/oncology, neurosciences, orthopedics, pediatrics, vascular surgery, and more. MyMichigan Health demonstrates its commitment to the future of medicine by partnering with leading institutions to offer medical education programs that train medical students, physicians, nurse practitioner and physician assistant students, nursing students and other clinical experts for our region. Recognized by Forbes in 2022, 2023 and 2024 as one of ‘America’s Best Employers by State,’ MyMichigan is a major employer in all of the areas it serves. In fact, its more than 13,800 employees, volunteers, health care providers and other personnel work together to create healthy communities through solutions designed to meet the ever-changing needs of the more than one million residents in the health system’s 26 counties served. In fiscal year 2023, MyMichigan Health provided more than $128 million in community benefits, as well as supported its patients and families with new equipment, services and programs with funds raised by the MyMichigan Health Foundation, MyMichigan Medical Center Saginaw Foundation, MyMichigan Medical Center Tawas Foundation, and Field Neurosciences Institute.

MEDIA CONTACTS:

Joseph Sowmick
Public Relations Manager

Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan
Phone (989) 775-4076

jvsowmick@sagchip.org

Millie Jezior, APR

Public Relations Manager

MyMichigan Health

Phone (989) 839-3351

millie.jezior@midmichigan.org

www.mymichigan.org