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Barnes talks with UAMS Northeast family medicine residents after town hall. Image by Andrea Hooten

Town Hall at Northeast Regional Campus Highlights Leaders at All Levels

April 13, 2026 | University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) Chancellor C. Lowry Barnes, M.D., spoke to 70 UAMS Northeast employees at a recent town hall, building upon topics that drive his leadership— encouraging a culture of hospitality, boosting the institution’s financial health, and nurturing employee-driven solutions.

After the chancellor gave an overview of UAMS’ recent financial upturn, staff and family medicine residents peppered him with questions on equipment needs and staff training, lack of patient transportation, stymied attempts for specialized rotations, a needed focus on preventive medicine versus just treating the sick, and financial help for older patients struggling to pay medical bills.

The conversation also highlighted examples of what Barnes describes as “leadership from within,” displayed by staff and faculty at the UAMS Northeast Regional Campus.

“All of you have ideas. Most of you have leadership skills as well that go untapped. It’s up to us to find you and get you in a position where you can make a difference. We want to give you responsibilities so that you can help make a difference in the day-to-day life of UAMS,” Barnes said.

Scott Dickson, M.D., UAMS Northeast Regional Campus residency program director, bragged that second-year resident Kirby Curtis, D.O., displays this type of leadership. Curtis earned a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree from the New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine (NYITCOM) in Jonesboro. He hatched a plan for his fellow D.O. residents to mentor and teach osteopathic manipulation techniques (a hands-on treatment of musculoskeletal, nervous or lymphatic systems) to second-year students at NYITCOM, which is just 10 minutes from the UAMS Northeast Family Medical Clinic.

“And this was not by my prompting,” said Dickson. “They came to me with this idea that they wanted to partner with them. And in doing so, they’re forming relationships with the students.”

Barnes pointed out that developing bonds with local medical students means they are more likely to choose a family medicine residency at UAMS Northeast versus one out of state. And these residencies often lead to more physicians choosing to practice in-state. More than 50% of approximately 1,600 family medicine residents who have graduated from a UAMS Regional Campus residency program practice in Arkansas.

Alex Morris, UAMS Northeast residency director, pointed out that four of the current third-year residents have signed with St. Bernards Medical Center across the street, and over the past five years, 76% of residency graduates went on to practice in Arkansas.

“We have one of the highest retention rates of any of the regional programs,” Morris said.

Jackie Brickey, population health manager at the Jonesboro campus, said she is listening to “Unreasonable Hospitality,” a book by Will Guidara that spurred Barnes’ hospitality initiative for UAMS. The author referenced a restaurant that routinely loads its patrons’ parking meters to avoid tickets. In the spirit of taking care of customers, Brickey asked if UAMS could share patient transportation costs with the city or another entity.

“Yeah, that’s a great idea. And you know, it’s really nice when I get questions like that because they’re challenging. But they obviously come from the heart. We’re talking about our financial challenges, but hopefully there’s a benefactor in the Jonesboro area who would say, ‘Hey, this is something we should do for the community.’ That’s something we can put on the radar,” Barnes said.

Barnes asked Brickey to email him a yearly cost projection, and, in the meantime, he could talk to Jonesboro Mayor Harold Copenhaver, who was slated to be at the following community leadership meeting.

The UAMS Northeast town hall is the latest in a series of visits since Barnes was named chancellor. He plans to visit all eight regional campuses, meeting with employees, local officials and legislators, community leaders, donors, and local alumni.