JOPLIN, Mo. –  At 18 years old, Cory Emmert took a job as a pharmacy technician at Freeman Hospital West. It would be the first of many positions for him at Freeman, including working as an orderly in the recovery room, internships at Freeman Children’s Clinic and Freeman Midwest Orthopaedics, and then medical school rotations at Freeman. Now, he is back again and joining Freeman Health System as a general surgeon. 

“I love working here,” said Dr. Emmert. “Everybody is very nice. I’ve enjoyed my job and getting to know people. Family has worked here. Friends have worked here. I feel like the hospital takes great care of patients, and for all those reasons, I wanted to come back.”

A graduate of Carl Junction High School and Missouri Southern State University, Dr. Emmert attended medical school at A.T. Still University in Kirksville, Missouri, and completed his residency at Marshfield Clinic in Marshfield, Wisconsin. 

“One of the things I enjoy about general surgery is just how vast it is,” said Dr. Emmert. “I wanted to be a surgeon because it is very hands-on. There’s an immediate satisfaction from surgery when you have a patient who comes in with a problem and you can fix that problem right there.” 

Dr. Emmert said his goal with patients is to ensure they understand their options and guide them with advice at a time that can be overwhelming to them. 

“Patients will sometimes be unsure,” said Dr. Emmert. “Surgery is a foreign world to them. The hospital is a foreign area to them. They don’t understand the terminology. They don’t understand what’s happening and why. So, I think making sure they understand the reasons why we’re offering this surgery, why we need to do it and why it is the best thing for them is an area that guides my practice.” 

Dr. Emmert married his high school sweetheart, Sheree. They will reside in Joplin with their three children, 15-year-old Colton and 7-year-old twins, Baylee and Bentley. Dr. Emmert said he can’t express how excited they all are to be back home close to parents, grandparents, siblings and cousins.