SHELTON, WA –Dr. Mark Schlauderaff, M.D., has been an integral part of the health care community in Shelton for nearly 35 years. His compassion for patients and dedication to service has garnered widespread recognition. Mason General Hospital & Family of Clinics has named Dr. Schlauderaff the October Employee of the Month.

Dr. Schlauderaff grew up in Red Wing, Minnesota, and was inspired to study medicine in part because his father was a veterinarian. He attended medical school at the University of Minnesota and then completed his residency at the University of Washington in Seattle. Before opening his practice in Shelton, he spent a year providing medical care to refugees in the Chiang Khan district of the Loei province in northern Thailand.

As a board-certified internist, Dr. Schlauderaff has provided adult primary care and specialized in internal medicine throughout his entire career. In February 1985, he opened Olympic Physicians in Shelton with his wife, Pamela Schlauderaff. They owned the business for 26 years before Olympic Physicians joined Mason General Hospital & Family of Clinics in December 2013. Pamela Schlauderaff now works as Director of Quality, Safety and Regulatory Compliance for MGH&FC.

“From a business standpoint, many of the stresses went away when we joined Mason General,” Dr. Schlauderaff commented.

Dr. Schlauderaff enjoys practicing in a rural area because he has been able to maintain his skills and training over the years. In 2015, the Thurston County Chamber of Commerce with the Thurston-Mason County Medical Society presented him the Innovation in Rural Medicine Health Care Champion award.

“If I was in a big city, a general internist like me would have a lesser role,” he said. “I’m able to see more patients here without turning them over to subspecialists. That’s one of the advantages of being in a smaller place. I’m able to be nimble and make changes without needing to negotiate with hundreds of people and interest groups.”

Dr. Schlauderaff is known as Dr. Batman. His coworkers will find his office full to the brim with Batman memorabilia, and he can be found wearing a Batman pin on most days. Dr. Schlauderaff also enjoys riding his bicycle - in the warmer months, he rides 100 miles a week – and he loves literature.

During spring, summer and fall, 100 miles a week on my bicycle. Another big hobby is literature, I like reading the great books. My favorite author for a lot of time has been Mark Twain, Charles Dickens.

MGH&FC is certified by Det Norske Veritas (DNV) and is a licensed and accredited acute care hospital with a level four emergency trauma designation. There are more than 100 physicians on staff in 19 specialties. MGH&FC now offers 3D Mammography Services and Virtual Care 24/7.  For more information on 3D mammograms, Virtual Care or to find a health care provider, visit www.MasonGeneral.com.

                                                                        ##