Saint Joseph Health Gastroenterology Team Welcomes Missy Stipp

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Feb. 13, 2026) – Saint Joseph Health welcomes Melissa Stipp, DNP, APRN, FNP-C, FNP-BC, to Saint Joseph Medical Group – Gastroenterology in Lexington. A Berea native, Stipp originally thought she wanted to be a teacher.

“But I got a job at the local ER here and fell in love with medicine, taking care of patients,” she said, “and being supportive of families in their time of need.”

She said her goal is to make patients feel valued. "I hear patients express feeling like 'just a number' sometimes," she acknowledged, "but for me, it's about seeing each person for who they are and genuinely understanding their struggles in that moment. They're never just a number to me."

She adheres to a patient care philosophy grounded in empathy and mutual respect, striving to understand and address the multifaceted needs of each individual rather than limiting focus to their chief complaint.

Stipp attended Eastern Kentucky University for all of her training, starting with an ADN in December 2014, her BSN in May 2017, her MSN-FNP in May 2021 and her DNP in December of 2023.

She worked for several years as a registered nurse in both Lexington and Richmond while serving as the school nurse at Model Laboratory School on the EKU campus. Her first advanced practice role was as a family nurse practitioner at White House Clinics. During those four years, she was able to perfect her assessment skills but decided to focus on the specialty of gastroenterology.

In her spare time, Stipp and her husband, retired Lexington firefighter Daniel Stipp, spend a lot of time with their three sons, Jackson, 15; Isaac, 13;and Harrison, 7, at the ballpark depending on the sporting season. They live in Lexington on a farm where they raise chickens and turkeys.

Missy Stipp, APRN, will see patients at Saint Joseph Medical Group – Gastroenterology, 3470 Blazer Parkway, Suite 202, in Lexington. To schedule an appointment, call (859)-263-0022.

About Saint Joseph Health

Saint Joseph Health, part of CommonSpirit Health, is one of the largest and most comprehensive health systems in the Commonwealth of Kentucky with 100 locations in 20 counties, including hospitals, physician groups, clinics, primary care centers, specialty institutes, home health agencies and an ambulatory Care Center. The hospitals in Saint Joseph Health are Flaget Memorial Hospital, Saint Joseph Berea, Saint Joseph East, Saint Joseph Hospital, Saint Joseph Jessamine, Saint Joseph London, Saint Joseph Mount Sterling, and Women’s Hospital at Saint Joseph East. In total, the health system serves patients in 35 counties statewide. Saint Joseph Health is dedicated to providing a wide array of services to build a healthier future for all. Saint Joseph Health embodies a strong mission and faith-based heritage and works through local partnerships to expand access to care in the communities it serves.

About the Saint Joseph Medical Group

Saint Joseph Medical Group is the employed provider network of Saint Joseph Health with 88 locations in 17 communities throughout central and eastern Kentucky.