Standing up for what she believes in is exactly what this mother of four has done, putting everything on the line in order to provide the community she served with the quality of care she says everyone deserves.
Judy McKee grew up in Lisle, as the second of six children. She graduated from Whitney Point High School with a scholarship in hand to follow her dreams of becoming a nurse.
Judy graduated from the school of nursing at Albany Medical with her Registered Nursing degree and decided to start her family soon thereafter. After some time at home, Judy made the decision to go back to school to become a family nurse practitioner. She attended Community Memorial’s Family Nurse Practitioner Program in Syracuse, and in just a year, she earned her title as FNP.
In 1990, just a year after completing her education, Judy took the initiative to open a school-based health clinic at Oxford Academy. She says the concept was fairly new, but it was a great way to get kids the health care they deserved.
Judy’s next adventure began six years later when Chenango Memorial Hospital opened a clinic in South Otselic. For three years, Judy worked with Chenango Memorial and acted as the main provider in the South Otselic area.
In 1999, the hospital made the decision to pull the clinic out of South Otselic.
Judy explains she couldn’t let the clinic close. The nearest hospital is 40 minutes away in any direction, and she believed the community needed better care than that.
Judy remained determined to keep the facility open; she invested the family’s retirement money, took another mortgage on the house and decided to set up shop and become her own boss. The clinic was transformed into her own practice with all the rural flair and easy atmosphere she says she wanted to offer her patients. Otselic Valley Family Health NP.PC became the first clinic in New York State to be solely operated by a nurse practitioner. Some of the hardships, Judy says, of taking over the business herself were that the time she had at home with her own children was limited, and the insurance companies would take an additional 20 percent of her reimbursements.
Being one of the only clinics in the area, and with no hospitals close by, Judy recalls times when her clinic easily resembled an emergency room.
“From anything from full arrests to tractor accidents, I saw them all. The clinic was awesome, and it did a lot of good,” Judy said. “In a typical week I was working 12 hours a day, 6 to 7 days a week. Even when I was home, people would show up or I would make house calls if I was needed.”
Judy says she has really great support systems, and the community was an advocate for what she was doing. After seven years, Judy says the financial burden weighed heavily on her shoulders, and finally, with a heavy heart, she had to close the clinic.
After closing the clinic in Otselic, Judy, as well as just about 50 percent of her patients, made the switch to the United Medical Associates clinic in Greene. Judy says Greene is a fit for her due to the fact she is needed at home more now, and she can now work regular hours.
“I get to have all the fun of primary health care without the administrative burden,” said Judy. She also teaches interns in the health care field from Binghamton University throughout the year.
Judy explains getting time with her family is important. She says she also likes gardening and remodeling her home. She explains her and her husband Michael own what she calls a ‘mini-farm’ where they raise beef cattle, chicken and horses. Judy says she likes the outdoors and enjoys riding her motorcycle to work when the weather permits.

Editor’s Note: People in the Chenango community perform extraordinary feats under extraordinary circumstances every day. Oftentimes they go unnoticed or unappreciated; “Chenango Stories” puts the spotlight on those people whose compelling stories you might not otherwise hear. If you know someone who is interested in telling their “Chenango Story,” contact Jill Osterhout at 337-3075 or e-mail: josterhout@evesun.com.