After more than two decades of calling Fernley home, Jennifer Garrett is bringing her life's work back to the community that shaped it.
Garrett, a nurse practitioner with dual certification in family practice and psychiatric mental health, is helping lead the opening of Pinnacle Health in Fernley, a clinic built around prevention, and primary care.
"I've been in Fernley for 22 years," Garrett said. "My kids went to school here. This is home. Getting to care for people here, in a way that actually works for rural communities, is an honor."
The clinic is open Tuesday through Friday, with early morning appointments beginning around 7:30 a.m. Garrett sees patients on Tuesdays and Thursdays. She works alongside physician assistant Elizabeth Peterson, who brings a deep background in primary care and sees patients Wednesdays and Fridays. Together, they offer a complementary approach that blends medical treatment with education, mental health support, and long-term health planning.
Pinnacle Health's model is one Garrett knows well. While completing her Doctor of Nursing Practice, she focused her doctoral work on the barriers rural patients face when managing chronic illness, barriers that often have little to do with motivation and everything to do with access.
"When people end up back in the hospital, it's not because they didn't listen," she said. "It's because they couldn't get in to see a provider in time, or they didn't have the tools to follow the plan. By the time help is available, the problem has grown."
That insight came not only from academic research, but from years of bedside nursing and home health work, where Garrett saw firsthand how transportation, distance, and limited appointment availability can derail even the best care plans. Those experiences also pushed her to pursue a second certification in psychiatric mental health.
"Chronic illness is exhausting," she said. "It wears on people emotionally. If you don't address mental health alongside physical health, you're missing half the picture."
At Pinnacle Health, that philosophy shows up in longer conversations, patient education, and a strong emphasis on prevention, keeping people healthy and out of the hospital whenever possible. The goal, Garrett said, is to help patients age well, manage conditions earlier, and avoid the need for frequent trips to Reno.
"That drive adds another layer of difficulty," she said. "When care is far away, people put it off. We're trying to remove that obstacle."
Garrett credits Pinnacle founder Chris King with believing in that vision and waiting until the timing was right to open in Fernley. "I feel like a princess," she said with a laugh. "He waited until I finished my boards and was ready to serve this community."
For Garrett, the opening of Pinnacle Health in Fernley is both professional and deeply personal. What began as a temporary stop years ago became a hometown, and now, a place where her passion for prevention, primary care, and mental health can make a lasting difference.
"We fell in love with this town," she said. "Getting to give back by helping keep our people healthy, that's what this is all about."
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