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Phone: (276) 496-4433 Jacinto Alvarado is a general practitioner at the Saltville Medical Center in Saltville, Virginia. The Saltville practice is a community health center that receives federal funds to create access for low-income patients through a sliding scale of service charges. Dr. Alvarado has two partners - Debra Weddington, M.D. and Jessica Otto., both of who are also GMEC preceptors. The practice also includes two nurse practitioners. Dr. Alvarado was born on September 27, 1942 in Ecuador. He attended the University of Cuenca in Ecuador, where he received a doctorate in Medicine and Surgery in 1969. During his last year of medical school (1968-69), he completed a one-year rotating internship at St. Vincent Hospital in Guenca, Ecuador, with rotations in pediatrics, OB, medicine and surgery. In 1969, Dr. Alvarado began practicing general medicine at the Clinica Americana in Quito, Ecuador, where he remained until 1973. In 1973, Dr. Alvarado came to the United States and spent one year as a surgical resident at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York, New York. In 1975, he completed a year as an orthopedic resident at Norfolk General Hospital in Norfolk, Virginia. In 1975, Dr. Alvarado returned to the Clinica Americana in Quito, Ecuador, where he served until 1978 as Medical Director and attending physician in orthopedics. Dr. Alvarado returned to the United States in 1978 and completed his surgical residency in 1978 at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York. Next, he spent a year at Boston City Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts as a Fellow in Orthopedic Surgery. Upon completion of his training, Dr. Alvarado worked as a house physician for Central Suffolk Hospital in Riverhead, New York. In 1981, he returned to Quito, Ecuador and practiced orthopedics for three years at the Clinica Americana and Baca Ortiz Hospital. In 1984, Dr. Alvarado moved to Buffalo, New York and worked as a house physician for Sheehan Memorial Hospital until 1985, when he took a position as house physician in surgery at St. John's Episcopal Hospital in Far Rockaway, New York . From 1986 to 1990, Dr. Alvarado practiced general medicine at Sheehan Memorial Hospital in Buffalo. From 1990 to 1993, he staffed an urgent care clinic at St. James Mercy Hospital in Hornell, New York. Next, he spent a year as a general practitioner at a naval base clinic in Charleston, South Carolina. In 1994-95, he engaged in private practice with the Association of Family Medicine in Cheektowaga, New York. Dr. Alvarado has been with the Saltville Medical Center since 1995.
Dr. Alvarado sees an average of 20-25 patients a day, as do the other two physicians at Saltville Medical Center. The nurse practitioner sees between 20 and 25 patients a day. About 67% of Dr. Alvarado's patients are adults; 8% are geriatric adults; 15% are children; and 10% are adolescents. The majority of patients seen by Dr. Alvarado (52%) are uninsured; 21% are covered by Medicaid or Medicare; and 27% have private insurance. Saltville Medical Center has access to the Internet along with a computerized management information system that can track the number and diagnoses of patients seen by residents. In 2001, the practice will be connected to the University of Virginia Health System through a telemedicine program. Through telemedicine, Saltville physicians will engage in real-time consultations with subspecialists at the University of Virginia. Telemedicine will also allow access to educational programs such as grand rounds, case conferences and lectures. Saltville physicians are experienced in training students from various health disciplines nurse practitioners, physician assistants, environmentalists, and medical students and resident physicians. The Center has laid plans to become a full fledged multi-disciplinary training site. Dr. Alvarado enjoys practicing general medicine and feels that his strong surgical background is a valuable asset in an isolated rural practice. In his spare time, he enjoys music and art and spending time with his family. Dr. Alvarado has three grown children. He and his wife, who is a nurse, also have a son who was born in 1998. Residents who train in Saltville may choose to stay in area motels Chub's Motel in Saltville, Knight's Inn and Mount Rogers Motel in nearby Chilhowie, or the Swiss Inn or Economy Inn 15 minutes away in Glade Spring. Local citizens may offer room and board for visiting physicians. GMEC can attempt to locate a furnished house or apartment for residents, but we can offer no guarantees because short-term rentals are extremely difficult to secure in rural areas. The hills and hollows of Smyth County's landscape are divided into three valleys by the crests of Iron, Walker, and Little Mountains. Branches of the Holston River drain each valley. The town of Saltville (pop. 2,043) lies in the northeastern corner of Smyth County. Quiet homesteads, pastured hills, and patches of dense forest characterize the local landscape. Major elements of the economy are manufacturing, transfer payments (retirement pensions, disability income, and welfare benefits) retail trade, personal services, and tobacco and stock farming. In 1995, the largest employers were Utility Trailer (truck trailers), Dana Corporation (motor vehicle parts), Virginia House Furniture, and ITT Night Vision (aircraft parts). U.S. Interstate 81 bisects Smyth County about 15 minutes from Saltville. There are several restaurants, groceries, discount stores, banks, and specialty boutiques in Saltville, along with the Museum of Middle Appalachia. Hungry Mother State Park is about 20 minutes from Saltville, with facilities for camping, picnicking, hiking, biking, boating, swimming, fishing, and horseback riding. Mount Rogers National Recreation Area is about 35 miles south of Saltville and features the highest peak in Virginia.
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Jacinto C. Alvarado,
M.D. 
The Saltville Medical Center includes
nine exam rooms, a waived medical lab, simple x-ray equipment,
and facilities for emergency care and minor surgery. Typical
procedures performed on site include suturing of lacerations,
repair of fractures and sprains, removal of cysts, cryo-surgery,
biopsies, removal of warts and skin tags, incision and drainage,
foot care for diabetics, and repair of ingrown toenails. From
time to time, Dr. Alvarado and his partners staff health fairs,
health education projects, and other programs designed to improve
local population health. The practice includes a pharmacy program
that secures on behalf of indigent patients tens of thousands
of dollars worth of medicine each year. Saltville Medical Center
also participates in a migrant health network, offering medical
care to migrant workers through satellite clinics.
The practice is open from 8:30 a.m. until
7:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, and 8:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. on Saturdays.
Office hours for Dr. Alvarado are 9:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. on Mondays,
Wednesdays and Fridays, and 10:00 a.m. until 7:00 p.m. on Tuesdays and
Thursdays. On Saturdays, the practice is staffed by residents from the
Department of Family Medicine at East Tennessee State University. The
three physicians at Saltville alternate office call one week in every
three. Dr. Alvarado is associated with Johnston Memorial Hospital in
Abingdon, Virginia. He generally refers hospital admissions to Highlands
Internal Medicine or to the patient's preferred physician and does not
make hospital rounds. There are no call expectations for residents.