Mary Welker, MD
Physician, Professor
Primary Care - Family Medicine
Make an appointment
614-293-4980Conditions and expertise
- Primary Care
- Family Practice
Locations
- Primary Care New Albany
Academics and research
Department: Family Medicine
About
- Gender
- Female
Biography
I have been a practicing family physician for more than 30 years. As chair of the Department of Family Medicine at The Ohio State University, I believe in shared decision-making so that patients are engaged in their health care.
I love family medicine because it allows me to have a long-term doctor-patient relationship with a variety of individuals with different ages, different diseases, and different perspectives and experiences.
I enjoy the people that I work with at Ohio State and the fact that we look forward to making things better for our patients. I also like that we're an integrated health care system, where all records are in the same place with computer access from any of our sites. This allows doctors to view a patient's records and communicate electronically, which supports patient engagement.
Highlights
- Chair of Ohio State's Family Medicine Department for 14 years
- American Academy of Family Physicians Board of Directors
- Past President of American Academy of Family Physicians Foundation
- Best Doctor in America 2017
Conditions and expertise
- Family Practice
- Primary Care
Locations
Please note: Not all physicians schedule patients at each listed location.
Credentials
Education
- Residency - Family Medicine
- Riverside Methodist Hospital, Columbus, OH, United States
6/1/1976 - 6/30/1979 - Doctor of Medicine (MD)
- Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, OH, United States
7/1/1973 - 6/1/1976
Certification
-
American Board of Family Medicine
7/8/1979
Academics and research
In addition to my clinical work, I am a member of the Cancer Control Program at the OSUCCC – James, where my research focuses on education, clinical practice and administration.
I was the principal investigator on a Health Resources and Services Administration grant to work on interprofessional education with the College of Medicine, the College of Nursing, the College of Pharmacy, the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, and the College of Social Work. I am also the co-investigator on a nursing grant that was recently submitted to develop a residency program for advanced practices nurses in primary care.
I have co-authored numerous articles in well-respected publications, including the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine and Journal of Family Practice.
Having been in private practice for 16 years before joining the faculty full time, my primary interests are education, clinical practice and administration. At the state level, I have been very active in organized medicine through the Ohio Academy of Family Physicians and the Ohio State Medical Association. Nationally, I served three years on the board of directors for the American Academy of Family Physicians and 10 years on the AAFP Foundation’s board of trustees. I participated in their Physicians With Heart program and, most recently, in their Family Medicine Cares program, including three trips to Haiti.
Research interests
- Thyroid Nodule
- Thyrotoxicosis
Professional honors
- Board Certification: American Board of Family Medicine, 1979
- Recertification: 1985, 1991, 1997, 2004-2014; 2014-2024
- Philanthropist of the Year: American Academy of Family Physician Foundation, 2016
- Family Physician of the Year – Ohio Academy of Family Physicians, 2015
- Health Care Heroes Manager Award, 2008, central Ohio
- American Academy of Family Physicians Robert Graham Award for outstanding executives, 2007
- “Local Legend” – American Medical Women’s Association, 2004
- OSU Alumni Lifetime Achievement Award, 2001
- The Notre Dame Alumnae Association of St. Joseph Academy, Distinguished Alumnae, 2000
- Fellow: American Academy of Family Physicians, 1981
- Best Doctors in America, 2001-present
Grants
Funded-
7/1/2016 - 6/30/2021 - HRSA: Primary Care Training and Enhancement (PCTE) program
Expanding, Enhancing, and Enriching the Primary Care Workforce through Clinical Transformation Education, $2,495,068
Role: Co-Investigator (PI: Rundell)
Academic information
- Department:
- Family Medicine
- Division:
- Family Medicine
More about my research
Ratings and reviews
The overall patient satisfaction rating is an average of all patient responses to the six doctor communication related questions shown below from the Clinician and Group Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems survey. For additional information about the patient satisfaction survey, please visit our Patient Satisfaction Survey page.
The comments are submitted by patients and reflect their view and opinions. The comments are not endorsed by and do not necessarily reflect the views of Ohio State Wexner Medical Center.
352 Patient Satisfaction Reviews
Patient Comments
Consulting and related relationships
At The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, we support a faculty member’s research and consulting in collaboration with medical device, research and/or drug companies because a faculty member’s expertise can guide important advancements in the practice of medicine and improve patient care. In order to provide effective management of these relationships, the University requires annual disclosures from all faculty members with external interests related to their University responsibilities.
As of 11/3/2025, Mary Welker has reported no relationships with companies or entities.
She was very relaxed and unhurried. Easy to talk to and very caring.
Dr Welker always spends quality time with me. Gives me time to ask questions.
Dr. Welker is the BEST. She has been my doctor for over 40 years. I can't even begin to imagine going to anyone else.
The very best
Best Doc in the city!!!
Caring,listened to me. And provided posible solutions.
The Visit was very good. The overall visit was a very good visit.
She is excellent
Dr Welker covered all my questions in a professional and caring way.
Very informative, helpful
She took as much time as I needed to answer my questions. Was pleasant and explained when I could expect my test results. She put comments in my chart concerning those tests!
Very good ,very patient listening to me Given accurate diagnosis and also detail explanations
Listens and hears what I'm saying.
VERY GOOD
Very good
Excellent experience.
Professional friendly and knowledgeable
Dr Welker is superb. She is thorough and easy to understand. Every interaction has been positive.
All good
Cannot say enough wonderful things about Dr Welker. She is caring and knowledgeable. Dr Welker is very accessible. If you send a message via My Chart she gets back to you quickly. In the office she listens and spends time with you. It is like a concierge doctor and I fear wen she decides to retire