Brian Payne, APRN, will begin seeing patients on Tuesday at his new office on 722 W. Byers Avenue after relocating from The Springs Health Centre, which Owensboro Health purchased in 2022.
Payne said the move was necessary after Owensboro Health informed him earlier this year that it planned to expand gynecology services into his former space. While an alternate location was offered, he said it was too small to fit his practice.
He said the new site offers more privacy and easier access, with less congestion and more parking than the busy KY 54 corridor.
“Patients were always saying 54 is getting worse and worse as far as getting there. Parking seemed like a nightmare,” Payne said. “They seem excited about coming over here. It’s centrally located, and the office was laid out in a way that fit how our office functions.”
Payne said his staff played a major role in designing and customizing the office.
“It’s always exciting for office staff to get their input on how to lay the office out, how to decorate it, what things we need to change to make our office more efficient,” Payne said. “When you get your staff’s input, it gets them more motivated to work harder. They were a part of this from day one.”
The new location allows for greater efficiency, more patient privacy, and a homelike atmosphere, he added.
Payne has been a registered nurse since 1993, working in the emergency room until 1999 before joining longtime partner Dr. John Howard to open their first clinics. The two eventually established their practice at The Springs in 2002, where Payne spent 23 years before this week’s move.
Howard retired in 2024, with Payne purchasing the practice and continuing to oversee operations. Christopher Howell, APRN, who joined the team four years ago, remains on staff as another provider.
The practice continues to offer primary care, wellness exams, sick visits, sports physicals, minor laceration treatment, and in-house lab work.
“It’s been a crazy 12 months from buying a practice, learning the backend of the practice, and then all of a sudden moving the practice,” Payne said. “But my staff is amazing. They go above and beyond to make this practice function and to keep the focus on patients.”
Other tenants of The Springs, including the Springs Urgent Care and Poole’s Pharmacy Care, have also relocated following Owensboro Health’s acquisition.
For more background on Payne’s career and his longtime partnership with Howard, click here.
