Why would a pediatrician with a successful practice in south Louisiana (Sulphur) decide to come to a small community like Winnfield to care for children? Just ask Dr. Jeanette Bergsteadt who told the Journal that it was the pressure of patient numbers and related responsibilities that were taxing on her health.
“I love this place,” she said about Winn Community Health Center, “because here I can be a country doctor. There’s no rush. I can take the time to spend with my patient. That way, I am really able to understand their problems. Here, it’s more about care than it is numbers. I know pediatricians in Lake Charles who have to see 100 patients a day.”
She explained that in this current work environment, she can “look at the big picture.” She also admits that through the years she has personally faced hardships in life, both with health and family, “that help me better understand where these parents are coming from. It’s what you go through in life that makes you up.”
She’s been at Winn Community Health Center since December 10, 2013.
Winn families with children ages birth through 17 may also appreciate that Dr. Bergsteadt is able to take the time to use her full profession skills as that “country doctor” to take care of the medical needs of their children. For that age group, she handles any medical issues and can even assist in the area of mental health.
Dr. Bergsteadt is a Lake Charles native who received both her undergraduate and medical degrees at LSU-Shreveport which she achieved after having a family. With her medical license as a general practitioner in 1991, she went on to serve her three years of clinical research in Shreveport to get her doctorate as a pediatrician in 1994.
That may sound like a lot of ‘Louisiana’ but this doctor had traveled extensively in her childhood and youth. Her father was career military. “I attended 11 different schools by the time I reached seventh grade. He was stationed in Africa, Japan and it states all over the country.”
Dr. Bergsteadt may enjoy the work she does in Winnfield but her heart is in Lake Charles with her two grandchildren. “I never had grandparents around me when I was growing up so I want to be involved with mine.” She’s here in Winnfield during the week but travels to south Louisiana weekends to give her attention to them.
“I am also blessed to have my nurse, Samantha McManus, working with me. She’s working hard and hopes to be a nurse practitioner. I try to assist in that.”