Dr. Madden retires after 38 years - Valencia County News Bulletin

BELEN — A local, household medicine doc who has served generations of Valencia County residents is closing retired his vocation aft 38 years.

Dr. Richard “Rick” Madden’s archetypal time practicing medicine successful the Hub City was Jan. 1, 1985.

“It was a play and I was connected telephone for our practice, and I hadn’t adjacent seen a azygous diligent yet,” Madden recalls.

He met his precise archetypal diligent that play during a location sojourn — a marque caller baby.

Since then, helium has cared for patients from cradle to grave.

“The much I thought astir it and got done my assemblage education, it became wide to maine astatine immoderate constituent that I was a generalist,” helium said. “I wanted to beryllium capable to instrumentality attraction of radical from each walks of beingness and each ages from commencement to death, and that was household medicine.”

Even earlier helium began aesculapian school, Madden said determination were astatine slightest 2 seminal events that pointed him successful the absorption of being a doctor.

When helium was 13, helium begetter suggested helium deliberation astir becoming a doctor. It was a vocation way helium hadn’t considered.

“It instantly made consciousness to me. He saw thing successful me, that I hadn’t rather processed successful that mode yet,” helium said “and it’s  astir caring for radical and being honored to beryllium portion of their lives.”

Madden besides had a tendency to larn astir the subject of medicine. As a young boy, helium remembered the doc looking successful his ears with a lighted scope.

“I wondered however you tin spot each the mode through,” helium said with a chuckle. “So I wanted to find retired however the mysteries of the assemblage works.”

Originally from Indianapolis, Ind., Madden received his bachelor’s grade successful biology from Brown University successful Providence, Rhode Island. He earned his aesculapian grade from the University of New Mexico School of Medicine, wherever helium besides completed his household medicine residency.

Madden didn’t spell into aesculapian schoolhouse close retired of college, adjacent though that was what galore did owed to the Vietnam war.

“I joined the Army for 3 years due to the fact that I was No. 16 successful the archetypal draft,” the doc said.

He spent 3 years successful San Antonio astatine Fort Sam Houston teaching aesculapian laboratory.

“It was a truly bully occupation compared to what could person happened — to beryllium connected the beforehand lines of Vietnam,” Madden said.

After helium was discharged, Madden acceptable his sights connected New Mexico. He’d spent respective summers moving astatine assorted camps successful the Land of Enchantment, and he’d met his wife, Molly, determination and became wholly enchanted with her.

“I fell successful emotion with her and fell successful emotion with New Mexico,” Madden said.  “I decided I lone wanted to use to UNM for aesculapian school.”

After getting his M.D. successful 1980, Madden went connected to bash his residency astatine UNM, graduating successful 1983.

As they began searching for the perfect tiny town, the mates were besides looking intimately astatine schoolhouse districts. Their archetypal child, Jennifer, was calved 9 weeks aboriginal with a diaphragmatic hernia, a commencement defect wherever determination is simply a spread successful the diaphragm, and organs successful the abdomen tin determination done the spread successful the diaphragm and upwards into a baby’s chest.

“It’s a full aesculapian disaster, a batch of encephalon damage,” helium said. “We knew she we needed peculiar acquisition and Belen really had the champion peculiar acquisition we could find anyplace successful the state.

“The crushed seemed to beryllium they had taken the national monies (for peculiar education) and developed a precise apical tier peculiar ed programme for simple schools.”

During his career, Madden said helium was capable to enactment with galore radical with developmental disabilities, thing helium said was a precise important and fulfilling portion of his practice.

“I’ve been honored to beryllium portion of people’s lives. People are truthful bully successful New Mexico,” helium said. “I’ve been capable to bash each kinds of medicine.”

Medicine arsenic a vocation is afloat of ups and downs, successes and frustrations. Dr. Madden saw 1 of the biggest blows to section wellness attraction during his tenure — the closure of the section infirmary successful 1990.

“I was main of unit astatine the time. It was each astir financing. It was owned by Presbyterian and they were losing fractional a cardinal dollars a twelvemonth and projected to suffer more,” helium recalled.

In 1989, the nationalist was asked to enactment a mill levy — a spot taxation — which was voted down connected a three-to-one margin.

“It would person been, connected average, lone $60 a year,” Madden said. “The exertion (of the Valencia County News-Bulletin) astatine that clip really published an editorial espousing that we should ballot for (the tax). His household was my patients.”

With the mill levy voted down, the infirmary closed. At the invitation of Presbyterian, section physicians including Madden were asked to tally a superior attraction session retired of the aged infirmary facility.

It opened successful March 1990, with Madden arsenic 1 of the archetypal doctors to signifier astatine the location, which is inactive operating connected Christopher Road.

“Such a bittersweet happening for radical who needed section 24-hour care, to suffer their afloat work hospital.”

Hospital oregon not, Madden has cared for patients done each stages of their life, astatine 1 little constituent seeing 5 generations astatine 1 time.

“You witnesser a patient’s commencement and past you spot them again and they’re having a baby, and past they mightiness person their grandchildren having a baby,” helium said. “At the different extremity of the spectrum is death. Being portion of people’s dying process is immensely gratifying successful the consciousness of being capable to assistance the household arsenic good arsenic the idiosyncratic to grapple with what’s coming and larn from them, to supply immoderate guidance, possibly marque it easier.”

In summation to treating patients, Madden said his signifier has allowed him to larn astir authorities and section wellness argumentation and its effect.

He served connected the nationalist committee for the American Academy and Family Physicians from 2010 to 2013, and anterior to that, served connected committees and commissions nationally for the academy.

“I felt similar I got a wellness argumentation fellowship implicit those years,” Madden said.

He is besides the president of the authorities affairs committee for the New Mexico Academy of Physicians.

When helium moved to Belen successful 1985, Madden said his intent was to “try it out, due to the fact that I knew they needed superior attraction successful agrarian areas. Then aft 5 years, I thought I mightiness spell backmost to the assemblage and teach.

“I conscionable found, this is wherever I belong. I didn’t cognize I was a tiny municipality feline till I moved to one. It has been truthful rewarding and I’m truthful grateful to the assemblage and my patients.”