El Dorado

Michael Fitts, PsyD, Interim Director

“The mission of AHEC South Arkansas is to provide state-of-the-art comprehensive, accessible health care for the people of South Arkansas by educating, nurturing, and supporting present and future healthcare professionals.” This mission challenges the employees of AHEC South Arkansas to remain focused. This Center has been in existence in El Dorado since 1973 and the Family Medicine Residency Program started in 1980. We have wonderful facilities which are currently housed in the Warner Brown facility in El Dorado, Arkansas.

 AHEC South Arkansas has many unique programs that we offer in El Dorado. The Family Medicine Residency, under the direction of Dr. Stephen King, is a 5-5-5 program. We are pleased that many of the graduates of this program reside in this area and surrounding counties. In addition to the residency program, we are committed to be a training site for medical students in the second, third and fourth year of medical school from the parent campus at UAMS. We are also the major provider of continuing education programs for health professionals in south Arkansas. Many of the credit courses and some degrees can be completed in El Dorado through the various colleges at UAMS.

All of our full-time faculty members are committed to teaching in the Family Medicine Residency Program. Our full-time family physician faculty also have a panel of patients which are seen in the UAMS Faculty Clinic. In addition, AHEC South Arkansas operates a Community Based VA Outpatient Clinic. This clinic provides opportunities for many of our veterans in this regional area to receive primary care. The Family Medicine Clinics are all part of our commitment to provide family medicine residents opportunities to enhance their skills, abilities and interpersonal relations in the delivery of quality health care.

Yes, we are a part of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences team; we are committed to providing quality health care for the whole family in every stage of life. We have a unique opportunity and challenge to provide outstanding educational opportunities in a rural setting. We continue to pursue our vision to be “A beacon of model health care for all.”