UAMS Receives Funding to Benefit Underserved, Uninsured
By Kevin Rowe
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LITTLE ROCK – The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) has received $121,000 from the Arkansas Minority Health Commission that will directly benefit targeted areas of the state’s underserved and uninsured residents.
The money is being distributed in five roughly equal amounts through UAMS:
The UAMS Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute’s Cancer Control Breast Cancer Education and Navigation Program will receive $24,000 for breast cancer education and personalized, professional assistance for women in underserved areas who need screenings and follow-up care. To learn more about enrolling in the program, contact Kimberly Enoch at 800-259-8794.
The UAMS Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute’s Cancer Control Prostate Cancer Patient Education, Screening and Navigation Program has received $24,999 to recruit and screen 320 men in Jefferson and Phillips counties. Patients who need follow-up care will receive professional assistance supported by the funding. To learn more about participating in the program, contact Dale Gray at 800-259-8794.
The UAMS Area Health Education Center (AHEC) Northeast in Jonesboro has received $24,999 to help guide more minority students toward medical careers. The AHEC, in partnership with the Arkansas Minority Health Commission, will hold three one-day workshops for area high school and college students who may be interested in a medical career. The workshops, to be held at St. Bernards Medical Center in Jonesboro, Arkansas State University in Jonesboro and UAMS, will show students the wide variety of health professions available and the academic requirements for each profession. The workshops also are designed to increase students’ knowledge of minority health issues. To learn more about enrolling in the program, contact Sandra Lusby at 870-219-7083.
The UAMS AHEC Southwest in Texarkana has received a six-month $22,265 contract to enhance its DeQueen-based Minority Health Clinic and establish a Chronic Care Model to address diabetes, hypertension and obesity in a primarily Hispanic community. The program is designed to better meet residents’ health care needs by improving access to health care education and services and providing professional follow-up care. The program will continue with support from other funding sources.
The UAMS Regional Programs Community-Based Medical Interpreter Training Partnership program has received $24,850 to increase the number of medical interpreters in Calhoun, Union, Bradley, Ouachita, Hot Spring, Lafayette, Hempstead and Desha counties. The year-long program is expected to train 15 interpreters and establish a referral service for doctors in those counties who need trained interpreters.
The Arkansas Minority Health Commission was created in 1991 by the Arkansas Legislature to address health care disparities within the state. The 12-member commission works to assure that all minority Arkansans have access to health care that is equal to the care provided to others and to address, treat and prevent diseases and conditions that are prevalent among minority populations.
UAMS is the state’s only comprehensive academic health center, with five colleges, a graduate school, a medical center, six centers of excellence and a statewide network of regional centers. UAMS has 2,538 students and 733 medical residents. Its centers of excellence include the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, the Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute, the Myeloma Institute for Research and Therapy, the Harvey & Bernice Jones Eye Institute, the Psychiatric Research Institute and the Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging. It is one of the state’s largest public employers with about 9,600 employees, including nearly 1,150 physicians who provide medical care to patients at UAMS, Arkansas Children’s Hospital, the VA Medical Center and UAMS’ Area Health Education Centers throughout the state. UAMS and its affiliates have an economic impact in Arkansas of $5 billion a year. Visit www.uams.edu.