For Brenda, this community has always been her home. Steven came later, moving from Michigan in 1989, but quickly found his place alongside Brenda in the life they built together. For years, their connection to the community felt steady and familiar, until Brenda’s health changed everything.
Two years ago, Brenda began receiving ambulatory care at a different healthcare facility for a few wounds that were just having trouble getting better. The treatment kept things moving along, but it never felt like true healing. “It just felt like maintenance,” she said. “It never really was an experience of care.” Physically, the pain never eased and emotionally, the uncertainty weighed on them both. There were days when nothing went as planned, and the frustration grew.
“I was miserable,” Brenda shared. “I was in so much pain with no real answers.”
The fear that haunted her most was the possibility that the infection had reached her bloodstream and that what she was living with might become permanent. That fear, combined with daily pain, left Brenda anxious and exhausted. Moving around the house felt overwhelming and every movement came with worry.
About a year ago, her health changed again. Even though she was already receiving regular treatment, Brenda’s pain became so unbearable they made the decision to go to Regional Medical Center’s (RMC) Emergency Department. The response was immediate. “The staff at RMC was very fast in getting me the help I needed, including emergency surgery,” she recalled. “They literally kept me alive.”
The infection had, in fact, spread to her bloodstream and was causing a plethora of other issues, but Brenda and Steven sensed something different. What they found wasn’t just treatment anymore, they finally found care.
“It only took a visit or two to discover, but they actually cared,” Steven remarked about the ambulatory team at RMC. “They had drinks, a blanket, they met us at the door and treated Brenda like she was there to get better, not just to be a patient.” Those small, thoughtful gestures mattered more than they ever expected.
“They made you feel like a person,” Brenda explained. “It took some of the stress away so that I was able to actually, for the first time, focus on healing.”
For two months straight, Steven was by Brenda’s side at ambulatory care every single day. The consistency could have felt exhausting, but instead, it felt reassuring. Even during the most difficult moments, the staff never made them feel like a burden and, despite being on Medicaid, they never felt treated differently. “We felt heard and seen,” Steven said. “I saw Brenda actually getting better after every visit.”
Through it all, the team’s attentiveness never wavered. Smiles. Snacks. Gentle check-ins. Professional care paired with human connection. Over time, what began as patient-provider interactions grew into something deeper. “The previous facility was just clinical,” Steven said. “The RMC staff actually had real conversations with us, and those conversations grew very quickly into, what felt like, friendship.”
After months of treatment, Brenda reached a milestone she had almost stopped hoping for: a wound vac was finally removed after so many days of thinking this would be a permanent issue. “It was a true relief,” she said. “It felt like I was finally healing.” With healing came comfort, and with comfort came confidence. The anxiety, worry, and confusion that once felt debilitating began to fade and she could move around the house again without fear.
Brenda and Steven had been patients of Stringfellow Memorial Hospital for years, and trusting RMC did not come easily. “We were hesitant,” Steven admitted. “But we have a lot more respect now, especially with the changes we’ve seen and the care that we have now experienced in other areas.”
Today, when asked what RMC means to them, the answer is simple: hope. For anyone in the community who feels scared or unsure about where to turn, Steven and Brenda want them to know that RMC is not what it used to be, in the best way possible. “The care, the people, the overall experience,” Steven said. “We felt heard and seen.”
Their experience can be summed up in two powerful sentences. Steven says, “The RMC team was friendlier than I had experienced and much more helpful than I expected.” Brenda adds, “We are so grateful that our medical care was taken seriously and thankful they were part of my recovery.”
For Brenda and Steven, RMC wasn’t just a treatment facility, it was where they rediscovered healing, dignity, and a renewed sense of trust.
If you or a loved one would like to be featured in a patient testimonial for RMC, please email marketing@rmccares.org for consideration.






