Kevin Royal, MD

Dr. Royal was born in Ft. Rucker, Alabama but did most of his growing up in Eufaula, Alabama.  He graduated from Birmingham Southern College in 1990 with a B.A. in History.  He attended medical school at the University of South Alabama College of Medicine.  He completed internship and residency in Internal Medicine at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston.  After serving as Chief Resident in Charleston from 1997 to 1998, Dr. Royal began his career at IMA.  He lives in Opelika with his wife and children.  He enjoys reading, computers, cycling and participating in short triathlons.

Justin Campbell, MD

Dr. Campbell grew up in New Brockton, AL where he graduated from high school in 1999.  He received his B.S. in Biomedical Sciences from The University of South Alabama.  Upon graduation, he remained at South Alabama for medical school.  Dr. Campbell completed his Internal Medicine residency training at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, NC.   Dr. Campbell and his wife, Hilary, live in Auburn with their three children, Ethan, Kate, and Sarah.

Chris Coleman, MD

Dr. Coleman is from Texas but grew up in St. Louis, MO. He graduated from Auburn University in 1997 with a degree in accounting and then graduated from University of Texas with a masters in accounting. He worked as a CPA for 6 years in New York City and Houston, TX. Deciding to change careers, he graduated from medical school at Texas Tech University in 2011. Upon medical school graduation, he entered the U.S. Army and completed family medicine residency at Fort Hood, TX in 2014. He went on to serve 11 years in the Army, including 2 deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq. He served the last 4 years as a brigade surgeon in the 82nd Airborne at Fort Bragg, NC. Dr. Coleman and his wife Kim live in Auburn with their 3 active daughters. He enjoys reading, coffee, golf, and running stairs at Beard-Eaves Coliseum.

Jon Commander, MD

Dr. Commander grew up in Ponce de Leon, Florida on a Black Angus farm.  He attended Walton High School and graduated in 1973.  He then completed eight years of education at Auburn University with B.S. and M.S. degrees in Chemical Engineering.  He attended the University of South Alabama and received his M.D. degree in 1985.  He was married to his wife Julie in 1984.  Jon completed his Internal Medicine residency at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta,  He is board certified in Internal Medicine.  Jon and Julie have three children, Jennifer, Jared and Joy.  Jon enjoys hobbies of painting, gardening and golf. Dr. Commander retired in September 2023 and is looking forward to spending more time with family, especially his grandchildren.

Lisa Forehand, MD

Dr. Forehand grew up in northeast Ohio and graduated from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland with a degree in biochemistry. She earned her medical degree at the Ohio State University College of Medicine and completed Internal Medicine Residency at OSU Medical Center with additional training in Pulmonary Medicine. For the past 20 years, she has practiced primary care in Buffalo, NY. She and her husband Scott have 3 children, Ellen, Clara, and Matthew. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, running, music, and her dog Thor. She lives in Auburn with her family.

Will Griffin, MD

Michael Gunter, MD

Robert Patton, MD, FACP

Dr. Patton grew up in Atmore and Mobile, Alabama.  He graduated from the University of Alabama and Medical College of Alabama.  He served in the United States Air Force from 1968-1970 and completed his internship and residency at Mobile General Hospital/South Alabama.  Dr. Patton has been in practice at IMA since 1973.  He has a wife, Barbara, and three children, Michael, Richard and Forrest.  He is certified by the Board of Internal Medicine and a fellow of the American College of Physicians.

Susan J. Wright, MD

Dr. Wright grew up in Prattville, Alabama and received her undergraduate degree in microbiology from Auburn University in 1989.  She attended medical school at the University of South Alabama in Mobile and completed her residency in Internal Medicine at the University of Mississippi in Jackson, Mississippi.  She has been in practice with IMA since 2001. She enjoys cooking, hiking, reading, and spending time with her daughter, Emily.

Sylvia Anderson, NP

Hope Beam, NP

Hope Beam grew up in Auburn, AL, and graduated from Auburn University with her BSN in 1995. She worked at EAMC for many years before she decided to go back to school, graduating from Auburn University/AUM in 2019 with a Master’s degree in Nursing and certification as a Family Nurse Practitioner. She enjoys music and reading and has three young adult children and two dogs.

Ashley Blair, NP

Ashley Blair grew up in LaFayette, Alabama and received her Associate Nursing degree from Southern Union State Community College in 2004. She worked as a registered nurse in the Opelika community for eight years before deciding to expand her nursing career. She received a Master’s Degree in Nursing from the University of Alabama at Birmingham in 2014. She is certified as an Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner. She lives in Opelika with her husband Corey and their son, Caden.

Alex Burch, NP

Alex was born and raised in New Orleans, LA, but then decided to come to Auburn University for his undergraduate studies. He graduated from Auburn’s School of Nursing in 2015 with his BSN and returned home to work as a nurse at Ochsner Main Campus. After working at Ochsner, he spent three years as a travel nurse working in a variety of nursing fields. He received his MSN from the University of Alabama at Birmingham in 2020 and joined IMA in January 2021. He and his wife Lucy now live in Auburn.

Courtney Gilliland, NP

Courtney Gilliland grew up in Montgomery, Alabama. She graduated with a BSN from The University of Alabama in 2011. For several years, she worked as a nurse in the ICU at UAB Hospital. She then received a Master’s Degree in Nursing from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and obtained certification as a Family Practice Nurse Practitioner in 2014. She now lives in Auburn with her husband and their two children.

Susan Holmes, NP

Susan Holmes grew up in Birmingham, Alabama and moved to Auburn to pursue a nursing degree. She graduated with a BSN in the first nursing class from Auburn University in 1981 and remained in the area, working at East Alabama Medical Center for 15 years. She obtained a Master’s of Science in Nursing with the Family Nurse Practitioner certification from UAB in 1996. She was awarded a doctorate in Adult Education from Auburn University in 2006, and has taught nursing at both the undergraduate and graduate level. She has worked in gastroenterology, family practice, internal medicine and community mental health as a nurse practitioner. She joined IMA in 1996.

Caroline Martin, NP

Caroline Martin is from Opelika, Alabama and attended Auburn University where she received her degree in Spanish. She worked as a Spanish medical interpreter at EAMC prior to going to nursing school. She then worked in the ICU as a nurse for a number of years before furthering her education by receiving her NP degree from UAB. She is board certified as an Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner and has been with IMA since 2022.

Ward Hall, PA

Jessica Melvin, PA

Jessica grew up in Birmingham, AL, and graduated with a degree in Biomedical Sciences from Auburn University. She earned her Master of Health Science degree in Physician Assistant Studies at The University of South Alabama. After considering work in pediatrics, she realized she had grown a heart for serving adults instead, and she has had a lot of fun learning from her patients in the process of providing their medical care. She has been practicing at IMA since 2016. Jessica loves being the wife of Robert, the mother of her young children, and a member of her local church family.

Shaye Rawson, PA

Shaye Rawson grew up in Birmingham, Alabama. She graduated from Auburn University with a Bachelor of Science in Exercise Science in 2014. She received a Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies at Mercer University in 2019. After practicing in Atlanta, she moved to Auburn to start a career in Internal Medicine at IMA. She enjoys spending time with her husband and son, walking with friends, and drawing.