Dr. Elaine Kirchdoerfer – “Dr. K.” as her patients call her – is excited about being part of La Comunidad Hispana’s (LCH) medical team at the new Oxford satellite health center.

Having practiced medicine since 1990, Kirchdoerfer has a wealth of community health experience to bring to LCH. She joined the National Health Service Corps, which helped fund her education but also supported her desire to practice in an underserved community, according to a LCH press release.

After attending the Penn State College of Medicine in Hershey, she was placed in Appalachia in a small community in West Virginia during her service years. After her three years of service, she stayed on for 17 more years because she felt that her mission was not yet finished, the release said.

Kirchdoerfer’s husband, Dr. Michael Kirk, was also called to the medical field and currently practices with Dr. Soraruf for Penn Medicine in Unionville. The couple moved back to Chester County to be closer to family roots. Kirk is from the Kennett Square area; his father was a rector at the Church of the Advent for many years.

Now back in Pennsylvania, Kirchdoerfer is about two hours away from family in her hometown of Jim Thorpe, and she also has relatives in West Chester.

Kirchdoerfer said she has a strong appreciation for the community that LCH is serving.

“In the short time that I have worked at the LCH Oxford Community Health Center, I have been impressed with the fortitude and spirit of the community. I believe that it takes courage to do your best in the face of the daily challenges that many people that we serve face,” she said in the release. “These are extraordinary people who quietly do their best for their community and families despite hardships and barriers.”

The LCH Oxford Community Health Center provides primary, acute, and chronic care to the underserved Oxford community. Medicaid, Medicare, and most private insurances are accepted. Those without insurance are charged on a sliding scale fee based on the federal poverty level, but no one is turned away due to inability to pay, the release said

The LCH Board of Directors is thrilled to have Kirchdoerfer on the LCH team.

“We share and are delighted in Dr. K.’s passion and commitment. She is bringing the energy of LCH to Oxford,” said Paul Huberty, chairman of the LCH board, said in the release Chair.

Kirchdoerfer said she is eager to contribute to Oxford. “I look forward to learning more about the community and doing whatever I can to keep those in my care healthy and to help them live well,” she said in the release.

The Oxford satellite health center is located at 303 N. Third St., Suite #2, Oxford, 19363, next to the Redner’s shopping center.