UAMS, Bradley County Medical Center to sign management advising and co-branding agreement. By Yavonda Chase Sept. 25, 2026 | LITTLE ROCK - The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) and Bradley County Medical Center (BCMC) in Warren are planning to sign a management consulting and co-branding agreement. The agreement was approved Thursday by the BCMC Board of Directors. Under the agreement, BCMC will retain its assets, operations, and oversight of the hospital. No changes to patient services, hospital staff, or daily operations will result from the agreement. BCMC retains full operational authority. Under the agreement, UAMS will provide advisory management services across key operational areas and assist the hospital in identifying opportunities to improve daily operations. UAMS, the state's only academic health system, and BCMC have worked together for many years. BCMC is a participating hospital in UAMS's Stroke Program, which provides telehealth consults with UAMS neurologists so that hospitals around the state can offer lifesaving ischemic stroke treatment. "At UAMS, we believe every Arkansan should have access to outstanding healthcare in their own community," said UAMS Chancellor C. Lowry Barnes, M.D. "Through this management services agreement with Bradley County Medical Center, we are strengthening our efforts to improve health outcomes in South Arkansas by supporting the hospital with advisory services and expert recommendations." "This partnership with UAMS represents an important step forward in our efforts to improve healthcare access across South Arkansas," said Leslie Huitt, CEO and CFO of BCMC. "Through this agreement, UAMS will provide management advising and bring the strength of the UAMS brand to help us meet the evolving needs of our patients and create new opportunities to enhance care for the communities we serve." This year, UAMS announced co-management agreements with Helena Hospital and Mena Regional Health System as well as a strategic partnership with Jefferson Regional Medical Center in Pine Bluff. On Oct. 1, UAMS Health will open a 53-bed hospital in Saline County. About BCMC Marking 75 years of dedicated community service, BCMC is a 33-bed, critical access hospital located in Warren, Arkansas, serving Bradley County and the surrounding counties. It features 25 acute care beds alongside a specialized eight-bed Senior Care Unit, which offers a structured, inpatient psychiatric program dedicated to helping adults aged 60 and older navigate behavioral or emotional challenges. BCMC provides a wide range of services, including a 24/7 Emergency Department, a radiology department with modern imaging technology, advanced cardiopulmonary care, and various specialized programs, including a Home Health department that provides in-home medical care. As a community-focused healthcare provider, BCMC remains steadfast in its core mission to provide superior, high-quality care to every patient, every time across the region. UAMS is the state's only health sciences university, with colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Professions and Public Health; a graduate school; a hospital; a main campus in Little Rock; a Northwest Arkansas regional campus in Fayetteville; a statewide network of regional campuses; and seven institutes: the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute, Harvey & Bernice Jones Eye Institute, Psychiatric Research Institute, Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging, Translational Research Institute, and the Institute for Community Health Innovation. UAMS includes UAMS Health, a statewide health system that encompasses all of UAMS' clinical enterprise. UAMS is the only adult Level 1 trauma center in the state. UAMS has 3,553 students and 1,030 medical residents and fellows, and two dental residents. It is the state's largest public employer with about 12,000 employees, including 1,200 physicians who provide care to patients at UAMS, its regional campuses, Arkansas Children's, the VA Medical Center and Baptist Health. Visit www.uams.edu or uamshealth.com. Find UAMS group on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), YouTube or Instagram.

Hematologist Tamer Hellou, M.D., joins UAMS Myeloma Center. By Nathan Tidwell Sept. 22, 2026 | Hematologist Tamer Hellou, M.D., has joined the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute's Myeloma Center. Hellou comes to UAMS from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, where he spent the past two years on a fellowship in advanced hematology, specializing in plasma cell disorders, including amyloidosis, multiple myeloma, and Waldenstrom Macroglobulinemia. He began his educational and healthcare career in Israel, earning his medical degree from Bar Ilan University, followed by an internship at Rabin Medical Center, four years of internal medicine residency at Samson Assuta Ashdod University Hospital, and a three-year hematology fellowship at Sheba Medical Center. "Dr. Hellou is an outstanding addition to our team, and we are excited to have him at UAMS," said Frits van Rhee, M.D., Ph.D., clinical director for the Myeloma Center. The UAMS Myeloma Center is the most comprehensive center in the world for research and clinical care related to multiple myeloma and related diseases, such as Castleman Disease and Waldenstrom Macroglobulinemia. The center's team of leading scientists and clinicians has pioneered many advances that have become standards of care, leading to improved survival rates. To make an appointment with the Myeloma Center, call (501) 686-7105. UAMS is the state's only health sciences university, with colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Professions and Public Health; a graduate school; a hospital; a main campus in Little Rock; a Northwest Arkansas regional campus in Fayetteville; a statewide network of regional campuses; and seven institutes: the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute, Harvey & Bernice Jones Eye Institute, Psychiatric Research Institute, Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging, Translational Research Institute, and the Institute for Community Health Innovation. UAMS includes UAMS Health, a statewide health system that encompasses all of UAMS' clinical enterprise. UAMS is the only adult Level 1 trauma center in the state. UAMS has 3,553 students and 1,030 medical residents and fellows, and two dental residents. It is the state's largest public employer with about 12,000 employees, including 1,200 physicians who provide care to patients at UAMS, its regional campuses, Arkansas Children's, the VA Medical Center and Baptist Health. Visit www.uams.edu or uamshealth.com. Find University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), YouTube or Instagram.

UAMS to host Artificial Intelligence Conference in october. By News Staff Sept. 21, 2026 | LITTLE ROCK - The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) is hosting the Third Annual Innovations in Artificial Intelligence Conference on Oct. 8-9, focusing on artificial intelligence (AI) applications to research, clinics, and clinical education environments. A preconference event will be held from noon to 5 p.m., on Thursday, Oct. 8, in the Walton Auditorium on the 10th floor of the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, 449 Jack Stephens Drive, on the main UAMS campus in Little Rock. The conference will be held from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 9, in the same location. The free conference is open to anyone with an interest in AI and healthcare, including members of the public. Sessions will examine the evolving role and impact of AI within academic health centers, with emphasis across the clinical, research, and educational missions. "Artificial intelligence will not replace the human judgment, compassion, and curiosity at the heart of healthcare. It can, however, help us deliver care more effectively, prepare health professionals more thoughtfully, and accelerate discovery if we pair innovation with evidence, ethics, and accountability," said Wendy Ward, Ph.D., associate provost for faculty in the Division of Academic Affairs. The conference is hosted by the UAMS Interprofessional Faculty Development Department, the UAMS Office of Interprofessional Education (IPE), the UAMS Creativity Hub for Artificial Intelligence in Health (CHAI) housed in the College of Medicine's Department of Biomedical Informatics, the College of Medicine's Department of Humanities and Bioethics, and the Arkansas Geriatric Collaborative (AGEC). UAMS is the state's only health sciences university, with colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Professions and Public Health; a graduate school; a hospital; a main campus in Little Rock; a Northwest Arkansas regional campus in Fayetteville; a statewide network of regional campuses; and seven institutes: the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute, Harvey & Bernice Jones Eye Institute, Psychiatric Research Institute, Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging, Translational Research Institute, and the Institute for Community Health Innovation. UAMS includes UAMS Health, a statewide health system that encompasses all of UAMS' clinical enterprise. UAMS is the only adult Level 1 trauma center in the state. UAMS has 3,553 students and 1,030 medical residents and fellows, and two dental residents. It is the state's largest public employer with about 12,000 employees, including 1,200 physicians who provide care to patients at UAMS, its regional campuses, Arkansas Children's, the VA Medical Center and Baptist Health. Visit www.uams.edu or uamshealth.com. Find University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), YouTube or Instagram.