University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Encyclopedia
The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) is part of the University of Arkansas System
University of Arkansas System
The University of Arkansas System comprises six main campuses within the state of Arkansas; a medical school; two law schools; a unique graduate school focused on public service; statewide research, service and educational units for agriculture, criminal justice and archeology; and several...

, a state-run university
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...

 in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...

. The main campus is located in Little Rock
Little Rock, Arkansas
Little Rock is the capital and the largest city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 699,757 people in the 2010 census...

 and consists of five colleges including one graduate school
Graduate school
A graduate school is a school that awards advanced academic degrees with the general requirement that students must have earned a previous undergraduate degree...

, six institutes, a statewide network of community educational centers, and the UAMS Medical Center
UAMS Medical Center
UAMS Medical Center is a major tertiary university hospital located in Little Rock, Arkansas. It is the only academic teaching hospital and the only designated Level I trauma center in the state of Arkansas.-Overview:...

.

Organization

UAMS has 6 academic units:
  1. UAMS College of Medicine
    UAMS College of Medicine
    UAMS College of Medicine is a medical school that is part of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, a state-run university in the U.S. state of Arkansas and part of the University of Arkansas System. The primary campus is located in Little Rock and is affiliated with UAMS Medical Center,...

  2. UAMS College of Pharmacy
    Pharmacy
    Pharmacy is the health profession that links the health sciences with the chemical sciences and it is charged with ensuring the safe and effective use of pharmaceutical drugs...

  3. UAMS College of Nursing
    Nursing
    Nursing is a healthcare profession focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life from conception to death....

  4. UAMS College of Health Related Professions http://www.uams.edu/chrp/default.asp
  5. Fay W. Boozman
    Fay Boozman
    Fay W. Boozman was a Republican politician from the U.S. state of Arkansas, a close friend of former Governor Mike Huckabee and a brother of U.S...

     College of Public Health
    Public health
    Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals" . It is concerned with threats to health based on population health...

  6. UAMS Graduate School


UAMS is an academic health center and includes the only medical school in Arkansas. It combines its education efforts with the patient care resources of a hospital
Hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment by specialized staff and equipment. Hospitals often, but not always, provide for inpatient care or longer-term patient stays....

 and outpatient center and the specialized care and research at the following institutes:
  1. Winthrop Paul Rockefeller
    Winthrop Paul Rockefeller
    Winthrop Paul Rockefeller was a Republican politician who served as the 13th Lieutenant Governor of the U.S. state of Arkansas from 1996 until his death.-Early life and parents:...

     Cancer Institute (formerly the Arkansas Cancer Research Center)
  2. Harvey and Bernice Jones Eye
    Human eye
    The human eye is an organ which reacts to light for several purposes. As a conscious sense organ, the eye allows vision. Rod and cone cells in the retina allow conscious light perception and vision including color differentiation and the perception of depth...

     Institute
  3. Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging
  4. Translational Research Institute
  5. Myeloma Institute for Research and Therapy
  6. Psychiatric Research Institute
  7. Jackson T. Stephens
    Jackson T. Stephens
    Jackson Thomas Stephens was the founder of Little Rock, Arkansas-based Stephens Group, a diversified family of investment and media companies.- Background :...

     Spine
    Vertebral column
    In human anatomy, the vertebral column is a column usually consisting of 24 articulating vertebrae, and 9 fused vertebrae in the sacrum and the coccyx. It is situated in the dorsal aspect of the torso, separated by intervertebral discs...

     & Neurosciences Institute.


The Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System is an affiliate of UAMS. Arkansas Children's Hospital
Arkansas Children's Hospital
The Arkansas Children's Hospital is a pediatric hospital in Little Rock, Arkansas. It is the only pediatric Level I trauma center in Arkansas and the sixth largest in the United States, serving children from birth to age twenty-one...

 contracts UAMS's physicians for clinical services. UAMS doctors are on staff at the two facilities and both serve as clinical locations for UAMS students and resident physicians to receive hands-on experience treating patients.

The community outreach efforts of UAMS include seven Area Health Education Centers http://www.uams.edu/AHEC (AHECs) in Fayetteville
Fayetteville, Arkansas
Fayetteville is the county seat of Washington County, and the third largest city in Arkansas. The city is centrally located within the county and is home to the University of Arkansas. Fayetteville is also deep in the Boston Mountains, a subset of The Ozarks...

, Pine Bluff, El Dorado
El Dorado, Arkansas
El Dorado , a multi-cultural arts center: South Arkansas Arts Center , an award-winning renovated downtown, and numerous sporting, shopping, and dining opportunities. El Dorado is the population, cultural, and business center of the 7,300 mi² regional area...

, Texarkana
Texarkana, Arkansas
As of the census of 2000, there were 26,448 people, 10,384 households, and 7,040 families residing in the city. The population density was 830.5 people per square mile . There were 11,721 housing units at an average density of 368.1 per square mile...

, Fort Smith
Fort Smith, Arkansas
Fort Smith is the second-largest city in Arkansas and one of the two county seats of Sebastian County. With a population of 86,209 in 2010, it is the principal city of the Fort Smith, Arkansas-Oklahoma Metropolitan Statistical Area, a region of 298,592 residents which encompasses the Arkansas...

, Jonesboro
Jonesboro, Arkansas
Jonesboro is a city in and one of the two county seats of Craighead County, Arkansas, United States. According to the 2010 US Census, the population of the city was 67,263. A college town, Jonesboro is the largest city in northeastern Arkansas and the fifth most populous city in the state...

, and Helena, Arkansas
Helena, Arkansas
Helena is the eastern portion of Helena-West Helena, Arkansas, a city in Phillips County, Arkansas. As of the 2000 census, this portion of the city population was 6,323. Helena was the county seat of Phillips County until January 1, 2006, when it merged its government and city limits with...

; networks of senior health centers and centers for young children with special health care needs; and interactive video education and medical consultation services to community hospitals around the state.

The UAMS College of Health Related Professions (CHRP) http://www.uams.edu/chrp/default.asp offers accredited educational programs in:
Speech Pathology, Cytotechnology, Dental Hygiene
Dental hygienist
thumb|right|300px|Dental hygienist holding a scalerA dental hygienist is a licensed dental professional who specializes in preventive oral health, typically focusing on techniques in oral hygiene. Local dental regulations determine the scope of practice of dental hygienists...

, Diagnostic Medical Sonography
Diagnostic Medical Sonography
Diagnostic Medical Sonography is the name for the profession practised by diagnostic medical sonographers . Diagnostic medical sonography, a branch of diagnostic medical imaging, uses non-ionizing ultrasound to produce 2D and 3D images of the body...

 http://www.uams.edu/chrp/sonography/, Dietetics & Nutrition, Emergency Medical Sciences, Genetic Counseling, Health Information Management, Medical Dosimetry, Medical Technology, Nuclear Medicine Imaging Sciences, Ophthalmic Technologies, Radiation Therapy, Radiologic Imaging Sciences, Radiologist Assistant, Respiratory Care, Surgical Technology

UAMS is the state’s largest basic and applied research institution, with a total budget of $1.3 billion and more than $100 million in annual research funding, grants and contracts and internationally renowned programs in multiple myeloma, aging and other areas.

UAMS is the largest public employer in the state with 10,552 employees. As of fall 2010, UAMS had 2,775 students, including 618 medical students, 481 in the College of Pharmacy, 637 in the College of Nursing, 632 in the College of Health Related Professions, 140 in the College of Public Health and 267 in the Graduate School. There were also 733 resident physicians and 1,352 faculty members.

UAMS and its affiliates have a total economic impact in Arkansas of about $5 billion per year.

History

In 1879, eight physicians, led by P.O. Hooper of Little Rock, each invested $625 to secure a charter for a medical school from Arkansas Industrial University (which later became the University of Arkansas
University of Arkansas
The University of Arkansas is a public, co-educational, land-grant, space-grant, research university. It is classified by the Carnegie Foundation as a research university with very high research activity. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and is located in...

). They purchased the Sperindio Restaurant and Hotel building on West Second Street in Little Rock for $5,000 to house the school, which opened on Oct. 7, 1879 with 22 students.

In 1880, Dr. Tom Pinson was the first graduate of the medical school.

In 1935, the medical school was moved to a new building next to the City Hospital in Little Rock. The five-story, $450,000 structure gave the School of Medicine a boost in clinical instruction of medical students. The hospital’s physicians were members of the school’s teaching faculty. The medical school building now houses the University of Arkansas at Little Rock
University of Arkansas at Little Rock
University of Arkansas at Little Rock , is a public research university located in Little Rock, Arkansas, United States, and the second largest university by enrollment in the state of Arkansas....

's William H. Bowen School of Law
University of Arkansas at Little Rock School of Law
The William H. Bowen School of Law is part of the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and was established in 1975. The law school is public, and has approximately 450 law students enrolled in full-time and part-time divisions. The annual entering class is approximately 155 students...

; the hospital building was torn down and became the law school's parking lot.

The next move came in 1950, when a 26 acres (105,218.4 m²) tract of land on West Markham Street was formally deeded to the university by the Arkansas State Hospital, a state-owned psychiatric hospital
Psychiatric hospital
Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental hospitals, are hospitals specializing in the treatment of serious mental disorders. Psychiatric hospitals vary widely in their size and grading. Some hospitals may specialise only in short-term or outpatient therapy for low-risk patients...

. In 1956, the university, then known as University of Arkansas Medical Center (UAMC), moved to the West Markham campus where it is currently. The university also assumed control of City Hospital, which moved with it; it became known as University Hospital, and more recently UAMS Medical Center
UAMS Medical Center
UAMS Medical Center is a major tertiary university hospital located in Little Rock, Arkansas. It is the only academic teaching hospital and the only designated Level I trauma center in the state of Arkansas.-Overview:...

.

The education mission of the institution also has grown. In 1951, the School of Pharmacy was established, followed in 1953 by the School of Nursing. In 1970, the School of Health Related Professions was approved by the University of Arkansas System Board of Trustees.

In 1995, the UAMS Graduate School was granted independent status from the Graduate School at the University of Arkansas. In 2003, the College of Public Health opened. In 2005, the College of Public Health was named for the late Dr. Fay W. Boozman, a UAMS graduate who led the Arkansas Department of Health from 1998 until his death in 2005.

In 1975, the names of the schools on campus were changed to colleges and the executive officer’s title became chancellor. In 1980, after being known by several different names through history, the institution’s name changed to the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS).

Dr. I. Dodd Wilson is the current UAMS chancellor. Wilson came to UAMS in 1986 as a professor and dean of the UAMS College of Medicine from the University of Minnesota Medical School, where he was a professor and vice chairman of the Department of Medicine. He was named executive vice chancellor at UAMS in July 1994. He was named chancellor in 2000.

Wilson succeeded Dr. Harry P. Ward, who served 21 years as chancellor and is credited with leading UAMS’ transformation from a small medical school with a charity hospital to an academic health center and research leader. The hospital’s Harry P. Ward Tower is named for him.

Dr. James L. Dennis was the first chancellor. He was originally named vice president of health sciences in 1970, becoming chancellor in 1975 when the title of the institution’s executive officer was changed. To honor his achievements they named the Section of Pediatrics building after him.

Rankings and Recognition

UAMS has received various awards and recognition for educational, clinical, and research endeavors over the years.

In education, UAMS is frequently recognized by US News and World Report as a leader in clinical education, tied for 33rd overall in 2010, and is ranked among the best research medical schools in the nation. US News and World Report also ranks the Geriatrics, Primary Care, and Nursing programs among the best in the nation. The Chronicle of Higher Education also ranks UAMS's Pharmacy program 5th in the nation .

In clinical care, UAMS has been featured as one of "America's Best Hospitals" by US News and World Report and listed as one of the 100 "Hospital of Choice" award winners by the American Alliance of Healthcare Providers. In 2011, UAMS was named the "Top Hospital" out of 23 in the Little Rock Metropolitan Area by US News and World Report. US News and World Report went on to recognize UAMS as a "high performing" hospital in the areas of Cancer, Ear, Nose and Throat, Gynecology, and Nephrology. UAMS is recognized as a world leader in Multiple Myleoma treatment, and boasts a 5-year survival rate twice that of the national average. It is also known for being the only high-risk pregnancy program, the only adult cystic fibrosis center, and the only liver transplant program in the state of Arkansas. UAMS is also home to 240 physicians featured in the list of Best Doctors in America, some of which are at Arkansas Children's Hospital
Arkansas Children's Hospital
The Arkansas Children's Hospital is a pediatric hospital in Little Rock, Arkansas. It is the only pediatric Level I trauma center in Arkansas and the sixth largest in the United States, serving children from birth to age twenty-one...

 and Central Arkansas Veteran's Healthcare System, where UAMS faculty serve as staff.

In research, UAMS is well known as a leader in multiple myeloma, geriatrics, vision, and spine treatment research and is home to the Arkansas Biosciences Institute and the UAMS Bioventures Business Incubator. UAMS is ranked in the top 20% of all US Colleges & Universities in research funding from Federal Government, and received $61 million in NIH (National Institutes of Health) funding in 2010. Clinical researchers at UAMS performed the first outpatient bone marrow transplant in the US, as well as the first gene therapy for multiple myeloma in the US. They are also home to a number of robotic, experimental, and advanced treatment facilities found nowhere else in the state of Arkansas. In 2010, UAMS teaching faculty and researcher Jerry Ware, partnered with Harvard Medical School's David Lee, were recognized for their work on a unique platelet treatment to treat rheumatoid arthritis as authoring one of the five most important papers in biology of 2010 by the Faculty of 1000 and were recognized as having produced the top advance in arthritis research by the Arthritis Foundation. Their research is ongoing and has a UAMS/Harvard patent pending through UAMS BioVentures.

Campus

The UAMS campus, now encompassing more than 84 acres (339,936.2 m²), is located on Markham Street in Little Rock. The university moved to the property in 1956. The campus includes an estimated 5200000 square feet (483,095.8 m²) of buildings.

Adjacent to the UAMS campus to the south is the John L. McClellan Veterans Administration Hospital, a part of the Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System. To the west are the Arkansas State Hospital grounds. Just south of the VA hospital is Interstate 630
Interstate 630
Interstate 630 in Arkansas is an east–west connector within Little Rock. It is also known as the Wilbur D. Mills Freeway and starts at Interstate 30/US Route 65/US Route 67/US Route 167 traveling west through downtown Little Rock to Interstate 430 and an at-grade intersection with...

, a major east-west thoroughfare through Little Rock.

Off campus, UAMS owns or leases several properties, including its seven AHECs, 11 locations across Arkansas of its Kids First pediatric day health clinics, the Westmark building near their main campus, the Westside Campus facility on the Arkansas Children's Hospital
Arkansas Children's Hospital
The Arkansas Children's Hospital is a pediatric hospital in Little Rock, Arkansas. It is the only pediatric Level I trauma center in Arkansas and the sixth largest in the United States, serving children from birth to age twenty-one...

 campus and a portion of the Freeway Medical building in Little Rock. UAMS also owns over two dozen single family homes and numerous empty lots and parking lots immediately to the east of their main campus. Their master plan calls for the space between Pine street and Cedar street to continue to be purchased when possible as a target zone for future campus growth.

Campus Expansion

In 2004, UAMS embarked on the most significant expansion efforts in its history with a slate of projects to provide additional space for its education, patient care, research and outreach programs. The over $500 million expansion effort will encompass several expansion and renovation projects.

UAMS officials said the expansion effort also was necessary because many programs had outgrown their current facilities. In addition, the predicted increase in the number of persons aged 65 or older that could overburden a health care system that already faces shortages of health care professionals.

The largest project was a 553282 square feet (51,401.6 m²), $197 million expansion of the UAMS Medical Center
UAMS Medical Center
UAMS Medical Center is a major tertiary university hospital located in Little Rock, Arkansas. It is the only academic teaching hospital and the only designated Level I trauma center in the state of Arkansas.-Overview:...

, which includes new patient rooms, operating rooms and space for other programs and services. The hospital expansion is needed to replace the outdated original hospital building, which opened in 1956. The original hospital will undergo renovation in phases to host new academic and research facilities

The 10-floor new hospital expansion includes 234 adult beds and 60 neonatal beds initially, with space for growth that would bring the total capacity to 393 private adult patient rooms between the new facility and the hospital’s existing Ward Tower. The first 9 floors opened on January 19, 2009, with the 10th floor as shell space for future expansion. As of 2011, high hospital bed occupancy led to construction work on the 10th floor project being started earlier than expected, and is currently underway. The 10th floor build-out will add 60 adult inpatient beds to the hospital.

The hospital expansion was built at the site of the old student dormitory, which was imploded on Feb. 19, 2006. The dorm was replaced with a 92000 square feet (8,547.1 m²), 177-unit Residence Hall, which opened to students in August 2006.

The six-floor, 110000 square feet (10,219.3 m²) Psychiatric Research Institute facility, a 40 bed facility built adjacent to the hospital expansion, includes space for inpatient and outpatient treatment, education, research and administration. It opened in December 2008. A 1,000-car parking deck was built adjoining and underneath the hospital expansion and PRI.

On Sept. 28, 2007, UAMS honored the late Winthrop P. Rockefeller, former Arkansas lieutenant governor, by renaming its Arkansas Cancer Research Center (ACRC) for him while celebrating the groundbreaking for a major expansion to the facility. The 12-floor, $130 million, 330000 square feet (30,658 m²) addition, located just north of the existing 11 story 200000 square feet (18,580.6 m²) facility, will allow the institute to treat more patients and host more research into new treatments. The addition opened in July, 2010.

A five-floor, 56000 square feet (5,202.6 m²) addition to the Jones Eye Institute opened in April 2006. It is named the Pat Walker Tower for the Springdale philanthropist whose gift made the project possible.

In 2010, construction began on a four-floor, 55000 square feet (5,109.7 m²) addition to the Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging. The $30.4 million addition will be built on top of the existing four-story, 96000 square feet (8,918.7 m²) building established by a similar grant from the Donald W Reynolds Foundation in 2000.

An approximately 43000 square feet (3,994.8 m²) I. Dodd Wilson Education Building was completed in 2008, including 14 25-seat classrooms, two 40-seat classrooms and two 214-seat auditoriums.

UAMS assisted with the construction of a 148000 square feet (13,749.6 m²) new state hospital in return for the land where the new residence hall is located and most of the old state hospital buildings that transferred to UAMS when construction was completed in 2008. Those buildings have are in various stages of renovation to house programs for the College of Health Related Professions while longer term uses for the land and structures are studied.

A satellite campus in Northwest Arkansas has also opened for the 2009-2010 academic year in the former Washington Regional Medical Center
Washington Regional Medical Center
Washington Regional Medical Center is a not-for-profit health care system located in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It includes an acute care hospital, a rehabilitation hospital, assisted living and long-term care facilities, kidney dialysis centers, an outpatient surgery center, and clinics devoted to...

 hospital and is in its second year of use. The UAMS Northwest
UAMS Northwest
The UAMS Northwest campus is community-based regional medical campus, and a satellite campus of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. It is located in the former Washington Regional Medical Center near the VA Hospital in Fayetteville, Arkansas, and is opening in phases, which started in...

campus is being planned in order to further expand the UAMS student enrollment in medicine, pharmacy, nursing, and allied health and accommodate additional medical residents.
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