Although Dr. Richard Mulder plans to retire, he really doesn't plan on anyone taking his place at the clinic in Ivanhoe.

"It will probably be impossible," Mulder said of selling his clinic to a doctor or health care provider.

Mulder will retire after 40 years of practice on Feb. 28. He officially announced his retirement Wednesday to give his patients time to find a new doctor. The long-time doctor also served as a state representative for seven years.

While he is trying to sell the clinic and its medical equipment, Mulder said the cost to buy and operate an independent clinic and the fewer number of doctors interested in family practice in a small, rural town will likely keep the clinic from selling.

His own colleagues who practice at the clinic don't want buy it. Dr. Tim Nealy is near retirement and Dawn Bucher, who has her doctorate as a nurse practitioner, can expand her clinic hours in Flandreau, S.D., Mulder said. Neither work at the Ivanhoe clinic full-time.

Although the region has doctors in Hendricks, Canby and other small towns, an independent family practice clinic in a rural area is not the norm in medical practices. Mulder operated a clinic in a town of fewer than 2,000 people for about 40 years. The hospital closed several years ago. As a family practice doctor, Mulder delivered babies, performed surgeries and cared for children, parents and the elderly.

The Minnesota Hospital Association said in 2007 that only 5 percent of all Minnesota doctors practice in rural counties. The University of Duluth Medical School said on its Web site only about four percent of all doctors nationally practice in rural areas. Ten percent of all doctors nationally are family practice doctors.

"Your younger students are going into family practice," said Char Bauer, a registered nurse who has worked with Mulder for more than 20 years. "It probably isn't as lucrative as other (specialities) and when you look at the time involved."

While others chose different specialities or chose to be employed in a system clinic or hospital, Mulder continued to practice family medicine because "I love it. I love it. I love it."

He liked the continuity and said it was privilege to treat his patients. Even if it meant calls during school concerts or while in an airport or at a wedding, Mulder said.

"You've got to be accessible," Mulder said. "That's the most important thing."

"Dr. Mulder made himself available 24 hours a day," clinic employee Shannon Sorensen said.

It wasn't unusual for Mulder to open the clinic on Saturday or Sunday to see a patient, Sorensen said.

Mulder made himself accessible to patients but also to others as he was on numerous state and national medical boards and organizations. He was the state representative from District 21B from 1995-2002.

Bauer said Mulder continually kept up with trends and treatment and recently attended a Mayo review.

Although Mulder plans to retire, he's "carved out" a room in his house to treat patients. As long as he doesn't charge for his services, he only has to pay a small amount for his insurance, which makes it affordable to practice free care, Mulder said.

He expects to see some patients, but most will want a regular, permanent doctor, Mulder said.

"You know, I've know him all this time," Bauer said. "He is a friend to me."

And when Bauer considers the time Mulder invested in his patients and practice, she said, "Nobody wants to do that anymore."