PEOPLE / Julian : Country Life Suits Doctor

The first day on the job in Julian, Dr. Brady Hartman got a taste of the difference between city and country medicine.

“One of my first patients was kicked by a horse,” he said.

Another difference between city and country doctoring is apparent: Hartman wears casual clothes, as though he were going to be tinkering in the yard.

Hartman’s new business is the culmination of his longtime fantasy of moving to the country. He formerly practiced corporate medicine in San Diego.

“I think I was looking for a relationship with my patients that I thought you could have better in this setting,” he said. “I think it’s a bit more personal than in the city.”

His office is in an old house, and his waiting room is a rustic living room, with hardwood floors and comfortable furniture.

With the nearest hospital an hour away in Escondido, and with no specialists in town, Hartman often treats ailments a family doctor in the city wouldn’t handle.

He is certified to give heart tests with his own EKG machine, and he recently became certified for taking X-rays. He sets simple fractures and performs minor surgeries.

Hartman, 54, hopes the move to Julian is permanent. “I’d like to finish my career here, but it’s too early to say yet.”