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(From left) State Reps. Mary Bentley and Tippi McCullough greet Luann Racher, M.D., UAMS assistant professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, as UAMS director of Women's Health services Nirvana Manning, M.D., looks on.
Image by Benjamin Waldrum
State Legislators Visit UAMS Women’s Health Center
| A group of 20 state legislators recently toured the UAMS Women’s Health Center, where they learned more about the slate of women’s services it provides for patients.
Nirvana Manning, M.D., director of Women’s Health services at UAMS Health, gave an overview of the center, which opened in 2020, and answered questions about care. Legislators asked about increasing access to women’s care across the state, as well as ways to address the nursing shortage affecting UAMS and hospitals nationwide.
“We really wanted to create a one-stop shop for the women of our state and the women of this area,” Manning said during the Oct. 19 visit. “Making sure that women have access to care is extremely important. They are so often the caretakers of their families, and will do everything they can to take care of others, but often to the detriment of themselves. And if they’re not taking care of themselves, they’re not taking care of anyone in their families.”
Afterward, center staff took legislators in small groups through the facility, which features 46 exam rooms, eight ultrasound rooms and a dedicated patient education space.
For many of the legislators, it was their first time visiting the center.
“I think we’re all very interested in improving Arkansas’ numbers in maternal death rates,” said state Rep. Mary Bentley. “So we wanted to reach out, and see what they’re doing here.”
“It’s nice to have it all centralized here just for women,” said state Rep. Julie Mayberry.
Services include care for routine pregnancies and high-risk pregnancy care from the only maternal-fetal medicine specialists in Central Arkansas. The center offers Central Arkansas’ only CenteringPregnancy Program, in which groups of women with similar due dates gather for extra prenatal care, education and support. Gynecology services include routine checkups, labs, ultrasounds and a uterine fibroid clinic. Menopause treatment services are all inclusive and tailored to the individual. Genetic and nutritional counseling, along with behavioral health services and prenatal classes compliment care.
The Women’s Center also houses the Arkansas Fetal Diagnosis and Management Program, which provides coordinated, compassionate and evidenced-based care for pregnancy and newborn cases complicated by congenital birth defects or genetic diseases, and the UAMS Vulvar Clinic, where women with vulvar and vaginal disorders are provided the latest treatments
The center is located at 6119 Midtown Ave., just off Interstate 630 and University Avenue near Target. Virtual visits are available according to patient preference. For in-person visits, COVID-19 precautions remain in place. Call the clinic at 501-526-1050 to schedule an appointment and find out the latest instructions for your visit. For more information, visit UAMS.Health/WomensCenter.