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For veterans yearning for consistency in their health care and treatment locally, the long wait is over, and that’s good news — for the Hamlet clinic and our community.

The United States Department of Veterans Affairs made a promise earlier this year that was fulfilled this past week.

On Tuesday, officials with the Fayetteville VA Medical Center welcomed Dr. Ruth M. Arnold as the new Primary Care Provider for the Community Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) in Hamlet.

Arnold is a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine and Board Certified in Internal Medicine. In her new role at the Hamlet CBOC, she will be one of two Primary Care Providers serving veterans in Richmond and Montgomery Counties and surrounding areas.

As a Primary Care Provider, Dr. Arnold will lead the second Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT) ensuring continuity and access to health care for veterans enrolled at the Hamlet CBOC.

Earlier this year, there were calls for another doctor to be based at the Hamlet clinic, and concerns voiced by some veterans of inconsistent treatment and care at the busy clinic.

Officials with the VA listened and promise a solution, in the form of another full-time dedicated physician for the Hamlet facility.

The Hamlet clinic is designed to offer primary care and mental health care to military veterans, as well as diabetic classes, pain management, addiction rehabilitation and smoking cessation classes.

Fayetteville VA Medical Center Director Elizabeth Goolsby said she has been aware of the issue of not having a primary care physician at Hamlet, but she promised “there will be a permanent physician at that clinic, which I know has been a source of frustration for patients. There will be two physicians at the clinic at all times. We are truly committed to the area,” she told the Daily Journal early last month.

This week, Goolsby followed through. “We invite area veterans and the community to join us in welcoming Dr. Ruth Arnold to the Hamlet CBOC,” Goolsby said. “Dr. Arnold is excited to move south and work in a small town to provide exceptional health care to area veterans.”

Welcome, Dr. Arnold. Please, make yourself at home.