UAMS East Regional Campus Breaks Ground on Family Medicine Clinic
| June 26, 2017 | Thirteen ceremonial golden shovels dug into a patch of dirt placed in the auditorium of UAMS East Regional Campus at a groundbreaking ceremony June 22 to kick off the transformation of its west wing into a 5,400-square-foot family medicine clinic.
The clinic is expected to open in late September. Weather concerns prompted the ceremony to be held indoors, but the more than 125 in attendance didn’t seem to mind.
“This is a wonderful, long-awaited day,” said Becky Hall, Ed.D., director of UAMS East. “The creation of a family medicine clinic brings us to the next step in our journey to improve the health of the Delta. We would not have been able to build this facility without the wisdom, support and guidance of so many, but especially the Helena Health Foundation.”
In attendance were state Rep. Chris Richey; Helena Mayor Jay Hollowell; Phillips County Judge Clark Hall; Larry and Dennis Delk of Larry Delk and Associates; and J.T. Thacker of Polk Stanley Wilcox Architects. Representing the Helena Health Foundation were Victor Juengel, chair, and P. Vasudevan, M.D., executive director.
“UAMS East has had a continuous positive impact on health outcomes across eastern Arkansas,” Richey said. “This clinic will allow even more opportunities for quality health care in this underserved region.”
Representing UAMS were Tim Hill, vice chancellor for Regional Campuses; Mark Kenneday, vice chancellor for Campus Operations; Sterling Moore, associate vice chancellor for Finance and Administration; and Thomas Bailey, M.D., who will serve as the clinic’s medical director.
“UAMS, through the UAMS East Regional Campus, has been committed to the Delta region for many years,” Hill said. “This new clinic further supports UAMS’s commitment to achieving better health in both Helena and the greater Delta region.”
Along with Becky Hall, each took a golden shovel and dug in to cheers and applause.
The $650,000 facility will feature eight exam rooms and support a full-time family practice physician and staff. Bailey, a Helena-West Helena native and graduate of UAMS residency program in Pine Bluff, has 15 years of private practice experience. Joining him will be Josephine Jackson, A.P.R.N., and Anita Sanders, L.P.N.
Hall presented Bailey, Jackson and Sanders with commemorative monogrammed white coats.
UAMS East Regional Campus was founded in 1990. Its staff of 56 serves seven counties in the Arkansas Delta.
“UAMS East is not what it is today because of a building – it is what it is because of this talented group of people who work night and day for the people of the Delta region,” Hall said. “Their work is what has made this program a success.”
UAMS is the state’s only health sciences university, with colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Professions and Public Health; a graduate school; a hospital; a main campus in Little Rock; a Northwest Arkansas regional campus in Fayetteville; a statewide network of regional campuses; and eight institutes: the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute, Harvey & Bernice Jones Eye Institute, Psychiatric Research Institute, Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging, Translational Research Institute, Institute for Digital Health & Innovation and the Institute for Community Health Innovation. UAMS includes UAMS Health, a statewide health system that encompasses all of UAMS’ clinical enterprise. UAMS is the only adult Level 1 trauma center in the state. UAMS has 3,275 students, 890 medical residents and fellows, and five dental residents. It is the state’s largest public employer with more than 12,000 employees, including 1,200 physicians who provide care to patients at UAMS, its regional campuses, Arkansas Children’s, the VA Medical Center and Baptist Health. Visit www.uams.edu or uamshealth.com. Find us on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), YouTube or Instagram.###