Dr. Keith Morrow felt a little uncomfortable Thursday night as he slipped on a bright white lab coat.

After all, as he he put it; he stopped wearing his 20 years ago.

Morrow’s personal attention and care for patients is what sets him apart from many physicians and led to his acceptance Thursday night as the national Country Doctor of the Year for 2011.

Russellville Hospital Chief Executive Officer Christine Stewart nominated Morrow for the award in 2011, shortly after he set up makeshift offices in Phil Campbell and Hackleburg after his were destroyed by an EF-5 tornado.

During a ceremony honoring Morrow at the A.W. Todd Center Thursday, Stewart said Morrow could have easily opened an office in Russellville and moved right along with his practice. He chose, instead, to work out of mobile units for the time being and continued serving the patients and areas that he had worked with for 25 years.

The Country Doctor of the Year for 2011, which is a prestigious, national award sponsored by Staff Care that is given to a physician who best exemplifies the spirit, skill and dedication of America’s rural medical practitioners.

“Dr. Morrow deserves this award for many reasons, among them his long-standing and proven commitment to the people of Phil Campbell and Hackleburg, who he serves through both our hospital and his own rural health clinics,” Stewart said.

“In the days, weeks and months following the E-F5 tornado that devastated northwest Alabama, Dr. Morrow’s dedication to his patients reached new heights, as he battled all odds to ensure healthcare was available when people needed it most.”

Morrow’s clinics in both Phil Campbell and Hackleburg were destroyed on April 27, but even though the buildings and everything inside them were gone, Morrow recognized the needs of the injured and mourning in his midst and took steps to assure local access to healthcare.

Morrow led his team to reopen temporary clinic locations within days of the storm – operating out of tents, tractor trailers and part of a fire station. He even began taking “car calls” to care for those who had difficulties accessing his temporary offices.

“Dr. Morrow could have much more easily relocated his clinics to nearby towns, but instead he insisted on remaining in the heart of the communities he has served for the past 25 years,” added Stewart. “He is an inspiration to us all, and the epitome of the Country Doctor.”

Even though he has been honored as the Country Doctor of the Year for 2011 and was named a North Council “Hospital Hero” by the Alabama Hospital Association in November, Morrow, who has been an active member of the medical staff at Russellville Hospital since 1986 and has served the hospital as chief of staff and vice chief of staff, said the decision to stay in the area was what he thought was best.

“I credit my staff for so much of what we accomplished,” Morrow said. “When you experience something like this – an event that destroyed 31 out of 32 businesses in a single town and claimed dozens of lives – you can’t help but ask yourself, ‘What do I want to do with the rest of my life?’

“Staying here and doing what we’ve done may not have been the easiest thing, but it was the right thing. We belong here and we know that the people need us here.”

Staff Care, which is the largest temporary physician firm in the U.S., has presented the Country Doctor of the Year award since 1992 to exemplary physicians practicing in communities of 30,000 or less.

Morrow always desired to practice medicine in the community where he grew up and for 25 years, Morrow has seen an average of 50 patients per day and has treated them all regardless of their ability to pay and is on call day and night.

As the 2011 Country Doctor of the Year, Staff Care representatives said Morrow will be able to enjoy two weeks of time off while Staff Care provides a temporary physician to fill in for him at no charge, which is a service valued at approximately $10,000. He also received the award’s signature plaque featuring a country doctor making his rounds on a horse and buggy, an engraved stethoscope, and a monogrammed lab coat.