Our mission is to provide northern New York with the highest quality of medical care and to satisfy our patient's health care needs in a prompt and efficient manner with warm and caring professional service.
12/01/2025
๐ The Day is Finally Here! ๐
All of your favorite updates, stories, and celebrations are now living in one spot on the North Star Health Alliance page!
Why the move?
โ One convenient location: No more jumping between pages.
โ The same great news: You won't miss a beat.
โ Same friendly faces, just one convenient place to follow along.
Make sure you head over and hit that Follow button so you stay in the loop. See you there!
11/26/2025
On Friday, November 21, North Country Orthopaedic Group celebrated the North Star Health Alliance "STAR" Awards, recognizing team members who live out Service, Teamwork, Accountability, and Resourcefulness every day.
Our 2025 NCOG STAR Award recipients are:
Service
Elizabeth (Liz) Verno, FNP-C, Endocrinology
Teamwork
Breanna Wilson, Scheduler
Accountability
Gabrielle Varcadipane, Medical Assistant
Resourcefulness
Tina Timmerman, Credit Counselor
These outstanding colleagues go above and beyond for patients, providers, and one another through compassionate care, creative problem-solving, and steady support during times of change. Their dedication truly reflects the values of North Star Health Alliance and the commitment to keeping care local for our community.
Congratulations and thank you, Liz, Breanna, Gabby, and Tina, for being shining STARs at NCOG.
11/20/2025
Every mile matters when you live in the North Country. ๐
Today, on National Rural Health Day, we celebrate the Power of Rural and the people who keep care close to home.
At North Star Health Alliance, our hospitals, practices, and clinics are rooted in the same small towns and villages we serve. We uniquely understand what rural healthcare really looks like:
โข Long drives for appointments
โข Weather and transportation that can get in the way
โข Fewer providers and higher rates of chronic illness in our communities
That is precisely why we are so committed to keeping healthcare local. By working together across our campuses and practices, we strive to:
โข Expand access close to home
โข Strengthen local care teams
โข Connect patients with the proper care at the right time
To our rural healthcare teams and community partners: thank you for showing up, day after day, for our neighbors. You are the heart of local healthcare. ๐
11/14/2025
Happy National Nurse Practitioner Week to our incredible Nurse Practitioners across North Star Health Alliance! ๐
This year's theme, "NPs: Trusted Voices, Proven Care", honors the essential role NPs play in keeping our communities healthy, close to home.
Trusted Voices speaks to the confidence patients place in our NPs to listen, explain, and guide them through every step of their health journey.
Proven Care recognizes the consistent, evidence-based, and compassionate care they provide every day in our clinics, hospitals, and specialty practices.
To every Nurse Practitioner within North Star Health Alliance, thank you for:
โข Building trust with patients and families
โข Providing expert diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up
โข Expanding access to high-quality local care
โข Bringing skill, kindness, and calm to every visit
Join us in celebrating our Nurse Practitioners this week and thanking them for being trusted voices and providing proven care across the North Country. ๐ฉบ๐
11/11/2025
11/11/2025
Our Walk-In Clinic will be closed today, November 11, 2025. Regularly scheduled appointments will still be seen as usual. Walk-in Clinic services will resume tomorrow. We appreciate your understanding.
11/07/2025
STARTING DEC 1ST ALL NEW POSTS WILL LIVE ON North Star Health Alliance PAGE
We know - keeping up with multiple pages can feel like dรฉjร vu. To make things simpler, starting December 1st, all our Facebook updates, announcements, and events will be shared exclusively on the North Star Health Alliance page.
Be sure to follow North Star Health Alliance to stay connected! No extra clicks, no duplicate posts, just the news that matters.
10/31/2025
BOO are you?
BOO, BOO, BOO, BOO?๐ ๐ป
10/29/2025
๐ October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month ๐
However youโre feeling right now, scared, unsure, or exhausted, youโre not alone. You deserve safety, dignity, and care, and there are people ready to help whenever youโre ready.
Know the facts:
๐น Intimate partner violence is common: about 41% of women and 26% of men in the U.S. have experienced contact sexual violence, physical violence, or stalking by a partner and reported a related impact.
๐น More than 12 million people in the U.S. are affected each year (about 24 people every minute).
Youโre not alone. Free, confidential, 24/7 support in the North Country:
๐น Jefferson County โ Victims Assistance Center (VAC): (315) 782-1855
๐น Lewis County โ Lewis County Opportunities, Victim Services: (315) 376-HELP (4357)
๐น St. Lawrence County โ St. Lawrence Valley Renewal House: (315) 379-9845
State & national hotlines (24/7):
๐น New York State Domestic & Sexual Violence Hotline: 1-800-942-6906 (text 844-997-2121, chat available)
๐นNational Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) (text START to 88788, chat available)
๐น988 Su***de & Crisis Lifeline: call or text 988
If youโre in immediate danger, call 911. ๐
When youโre ready, help is here.
10/29/2025
โก Drop in at NCOG Physical Therapy today between 1 and 3 PM for your free 15-minute screening!
Where
โข Carthage Therapy Services, 1001 West St, Carthage | 315.493.1340
โข Claxton Campus Rehab Services, 214 King Street, Ogdensburg | 315.713.5660
โข NCOG Physical Therapy, 1571 Washington St, Suite 106, Watertown | 315.836.2278
What to expect
โข A quick 1:1 check with a therapist
โข Answers to your questions and next steps
โข Simple exercises to try at home
โข Stations include Balance, Strength, Posture, and Mobility
โข Screenings are 15 minutes per person
How to join
โข Walk-ins welcome. Slots are limited.
โข Prefer to hold a time for today? Call your site.
โข Check in at the Physical Therapy Department Desk.
10/29/2025
FREE 15-minute Physical Therapy Screenings TODAY!
When
Wednesday, Oct 29, 1 to 3 PM
Where
โข Carthage Therapy Services, 1001 West St, Carthage | 315.493.1340
โข Claxton Campus Rehab Services, 214 King Street, Ogdensburg | 315.713.5660
โข NCOG Physical Therapy, 1571 Washington St, Suite 106, Watertown | 315.836.2278
What youโll get
โข One-on-one time with a therapist
โข Answers to your questions and next-step guidance
โข Simple exercises to try at home
How to join
โข Walk-ins welcome. Slots are limited.
โข Prefer a reservation? Call your site starting Oct 22. Check in at the Physical Therapy Department Desk.
Hosted by North Star Health Alliance partners: Carthage Area Hospital, Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center, and North Country Orthopaedic Group. Keeping healthcare local.
Address
1571 Washington Street, Suite 201 Watertown, NY 13601
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It was the summer of 1959, a time best remembered in the North Country for the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway, when a young Yale School of Medicine graduate, Walker R. Heap, MD, introduced the practice of orthopaedic surgery to northern New York.
Dr. Heap arrived in Watertown in July of that year, having just completed his orthopaedic training at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. He wasted no time starting his new practice. Within a few weeks of his arrival, he saw his first orthopaedic patient in his new office at 161 Clinton Street.
Dr. Heap's reputation as a skilled surgeon grew quickly, and within a few short years he found himself unable to keep up with the growing demand for his services. Turning to his orthopaedic training program, Dr. Heap persuaded fellow alumnus James B. Fish, MD, to join him in his work.
The surgeons' practice continued to grow through the 1960s. By 1970, the practice had recruited a third Michigan-trained orthopaedist, David O. Van Eenenaam, MD, and moved its offices to a new 11, 000-square-foot facility at 622 Washington Street. It also formally incorporated its business, adopting the name North Country Orthopaedic Group, PC, or NCOG.
The field of orthopaedics continued to change rapidly over the next few decades and NCOG responded accordingly. The practice systematically recruited newly trained orthopaedic surgeons to the group to ensure it always offered the latest surgical techniques and medical advances to its patients โ a philosophy we still follow today.
