Golf Tournament Tees it Up for UAMS Radiation Oncology

By Holland Doran

Sherry Hamilton (left), regulatory analyst for Southwest Power Pool, presents a check for $9,000 to Debbie Tomlinson, clinical operations director for the UAMS Radiation Oncology Center and Chasse Conque, director of development for the UAMS College of Medicine.

| May 8, 2013 | The UAMS Radiation Oncology Center, a component of the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, recently received a $9,000 gift from Southwest Power Pool to help take another swing at cancer.

More than 100 employees and vendor sponsors participated in the 2013 Southwest Power Pool 8th Annual Charity Golf Classic on April 27 at the Greens at North Hills in Sherwood.

“Last year, Southwest Power Pool lost a beloved colleague and friend to his fight with cancer,” said Scott Smith, director of treasury and risk management at the company  and tournament committee chairman. “He had received numerous treatments both locally and nationally the last few years. After reaching out to his family and learning of the significant cost associated with those treatments, the tournament committee looked for a local organization that helps Arkansans with the financial burdens of fighting the disease. The UAMS Radiation Oncology Center fit all of our criteria perfectly and the committee, staff and vendors at Southwest Power Pool could not be happier for the Arkansans that will benefit from this gift.”

The proceeds will benefit the center’s patient support fund, which provides items such as meal and transportation vouchers, lodging and medication for patients and their families.

“The UAMS Radiation Oncology Center spends about $75,000 a year on support to assist around 125 adult and pediatric patients and their families,” said Vaneerat Ratanatharathorn, M.D., medical director for the UAMS Radiation Oncology Center. “We are very grateful for this gift. It will help impact another 18-to-20 patients and their families.”

The UAMS Radiation Oncology Center treats both adult and pediatric cancer patients.

Southwest Power Pool, a nonprofit organization located in Little Rock with more than 500 employees, is a Regional Transmission Organization, mandated by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to ensure reliable supplies of power, adequate transmission infrastructure and competitive wholesale prices of electricity.