In 2015, SIU Medicine established a regional office to provide service to the eastern region of Illinois.  The office is housed on the Olney Central College campus in Olney. The eastern region includes Bond, Christian, Clark, Clay, Clinton, Coles, Crawford, Cumberland, DeWitt, Douglas, Edgar, Effingham, Fayette, Jasper, Lawrence, Marion, Moultrie, Piatt, Richland and Shelby counties.

Mrs. Wingert joined SIU Medicine in 2018 as the Rural Health Project Coordinator for the eastern region of Illinois. Her responsibilities include partnering with local stakeholders in order to address community health issues in a twenty-county region, supporting the Director of the Center for Rural Health and Social Service Development in regional health efforts, and supporting the interdepartmental efforts that expand the school's programs in population health and regional service programs.

Mrs. Wingert received her bachelor of science in applied health science from Indiana University and master of health administration from the University of Southern Indiana.

Eastern Region Outreach Initiatives

Health CareeRx Club

A health career exploration program for high school students in Coles, Cumberland, Edgar and neighboring counties.

Richland County Addiction Prevention Coalition

A collaborative community effort to prevent the spread of opioid abuse in Richland and surrounding counties.