Photo of female nurse practitioner standing in front of a wall.

Family nurse practitioner finds fulfillment in helping guide patients toward medical answers

Kimberly Tooley takes all aspects of a patient’s health into consideration.

The Mountain Family Care Center family nurse practitioner recognizes that some patients are more willing than others to seek out healthcare. That’s why Tooley uses every patient visit as an opportunity to not only provide high-quality care but also to educate her patients on how to care for themselves in a positive way.

“It’s important to take care of your body and make sure to get established with a primary care provider so that you can have good preventative health screenings performed that could possibly prevent cancer or other conditions from occurring,” Kimberly says. “Taking all aspects of a person's health into consideration when caring for them can help patients to thrive and feel their best and it's amazing to get to be a part of that process.”

Kimberly joined the team at Mountain Family Care Center in March 2025 where she provides walk-in, non-emergent express care to patients of all ages.

“I hope to be able to care for patients and help them to become aware of health issues that they are facing and help teach them how to care for themselves to strive for the best health outcomes,” Kimberly says. “The more they can have education regarding their condition, the more they can take control of it and make important life changes to bring about positive health results.”

With an interest in biological sciences, Kimberly knew that she wanted to pursue a career in healthcare, but it wasn’t until she was in nursing school and began to learn more about what nurse practitioners did that she decided she wanted to eventually further her education.

Kimberly earned her Bachelor of Science in nursing from the University of Texas at Austin in 2000. She later went on to earn a Master of Science – Family Nurse Practitioner from East Tennessee State University in Johnson City, Tenn.

“I love that nursing encompasses science (biology) and also it includes holistic care where you are concerned about all aspects of the health of a person's life: physical, mental, spiritual, and social health,” Kimberly says. “I always thought it was amazing how nurse practitioners have a nursing background/foundation and are so in tune with their patients' needs from doing bedside nursing and caring for the patient in a head-to-toe, holistic fashion.”

Prior to joining the team at Mountain Family Care Center, Kimberly spent more than 20 years working as a nurse in a variety of capacities, including cardiology and telemetry, labor and delivery, critical care and home health, among others.

In her spare time, Kimberly enjoys spending time with her husband and four children. The Tooley family loves camping, fishing, hiking and playing outside.