Drs. Peter Kohler and Morriss Henry (far right) are joined by Arvest Bank presidents.

Nov. 17, 2008 | The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) will be better able to address a growing health care work force shortage thanks to a $300,000 donation from the Walton Family Foundation. The gift was announced today at the former Washington Regional Medical Center, which UAMS is developing to house a satellite campus.  Donny Story, president, Arvest Bank, Fayetteville was on hand as a representative of the foundation to present the check. 

The northwest Arkansas campus will open for the fall 2009 semester and will allow UAMS to increase its enrollment to help address the need for more physicians and other health care professionals. The campus will include the UAMS colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy and Health Related Professions.

The funds will help UAMS develop the satellite campus, which will provide facilities for students, resident physicians, faculty and patients. It will have 250 to 300 students along with resident physicians when full enrollment is reached.

Peter O. Kohler, M.D., vice chancellor for the Northwest Arkansas Region, is leading the satellite campus effort, working with community leaders, hospital administrators and local health care providers.

“We are grateful for this gift from the Walton Family Foundation,” Kohler said. “This northwest campus is vital to being able to educate more health professionals, who will provide Arkansans with better access to health care. This gift will help us launch the regional campus of UAMS.”

“We are pleased to present this donation on behalf of the Walton Family Foundation to support UAMS’ efforts to address the health care work force shortage,” said Donny Story, president, Arvest Bank, Fayetteville. “This donation is just one of many we have made throughout the area.  It demonstrates the foundation’s ongoing commitment to improving the lives of Arkansans.”

The Walton Family Foundation works to support initiatives that honor the values and principles of Sam and Helen Walton.  The Foundation seeks to provide funding to grantees who are actively working to create positive change for others. Major areas of focus include: K-12 education reform, economic development in the Delta Region of Arkansas and Mississippi, conservation of sensitive marine and freshwater environments, and enhancing the quality of life in Northwest Arkansas.  For more information, go to www.waltonfamilyfoundation.org. 

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 2,652 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 10,000 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.