NorthShore Health Centers continue to expand their team of healthcare professionals, adding new disciplines to provide their patients with the most comprehensive, affordable care. In March they made the big addition of podiatry, with 21-year-veteran podiatrist Dr. Mark Jones, DPM, joining the team.
Jones is a mission-driven provider; he spent years watching healthcare become less and less accessible to those in need. This year, he decided to make a change and join an organization that shared his values – that quality care should be available to everyone, regardless of their ability to pay.
“My mission is to care for all of those in need,” he said. “I’ve seen the healthcare system change to the point where, unless you have excellent insurance, you’re often not going to get the best care. I want to change that and care for everybody in need. NorthShore presented me with the opportunity to do just that, and that’s why I partnered with them.”
A career in healthcare was not always Jones’ goal, however. He originally went to school for journalism, but found he was not much of a writer. While he was looking for his next path, his older brother was diagnosed with head and neck cancer – he dropped everything and transferred to Illinois State University to help him. His brother survived and is doing well, but his experiences there started him on the path to medicine.
“I finished my studies there and became an athletic trainer, and one of our head trainers told me I needed to go to medical school,” Jones said. “In the back of my head, I thought I kind of wanted to, but that was a lot of time and commitment. So I went more towards the physical therapy line.”
He started a career in physical therapy down in Florida. The medical group he was a part of, which did work for the Miami Dolphins, focused a lot on foot, ankle, and orthopedics. Ultimately, it inspired him to finally pursue medical school.
“At that point, I didn’t know much about podiatry,” he said. “I’d met a podiatrist, and he told me that it’s not just trimming nails and calluses. You do a lot of surgery. He invited me to shadow, and I learned so much about what they do and how they do it, and the way I’d describe it is foot and ankle orthopedics meets dermatology.”
Jones grew up in a small town, where his family owned a local business. His experiences helped shape how he approaches patients, even decades later.
“The relationship that I develop with my patients is the same one my family’s business built with their customers,” he said. “It’s a handshake, we’re here to work together – a team approach. I tell every patient that I’m a physician, and I can give my expert opinion, but we have to work together. If you can’t be a part of my team to help me help you, you aren’t going to get better like you want.”
Establishing those patient relationships, and seeing the outcomes when they get the help they need, has always been Jones’ favorite part of the job.
“Every patient that walks through the door can be a different opportunity to help someone,” he said. “You never know what’s going to come through. What really motivates me is when someone comes in in pain, they couldn’t get help elsewhere, and I’m able to do something to alleviate their suffering and get them back to life. That’s what keeps me going.”
To learn more about NorthShore Health Centers, visit northshorehealth.org
