Razorbacks partner with UAMS to serve student-athletes

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Razorback Athletics has partnered with the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) to provide comprehensive care for 465+ Razorback student-athletes. As part of the medical services agreement, UAMS will provide daily medical coverage to all 19 Razorback sport programs.

The four-year agreement was activated on January 1, 2021 and runs through December 31, 2024. As part of the partnership, UAMS will provide advanced care from sports medicine trained primary care physicians and sports medicine trained orthopedic physicians as well as first-class hospital and surgical services. The UAMS team will work in conjunction with the Razorback Athletics Sports Medicine staff on a daily basis.

“As part of our continued commitment to our student-athletes, we have partnered with UAMS to provide sports medicine trained care for our entire program,” Vice Chancellor and Director of Athletics Hunter Yurachek said. “We are extremely fortunate that we can access world-class care for our student-athletes both within our state and within the University of Arkansas system. I am appreciative of the commitment of UAMS Orthopaedics Chair Dr. Lowry Barnes and the entire UAMS team in helping us maintain the health and wellbeing of our student-athletes.”

UAMS currently has two Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine clinics in northwest Arkansas dedicated to treating athletes and community patients alike.

“We are thrilled to partner with the Arkansas Razorbacks Athletics Department to offer student-athletes the best possible care available to them,” Cam Patterson, M.D., MBA, UAMS Chancellor and CEO of UAMS Health said.” This is another testament to UAMS’ ongoing commitment to serving the entire Northwest Arkansas community. Our presence on the University campus with on-site physicians, a MRI machine, student-athlete sports medicine clinics and access to additional athletic trainers is a step towards our off-campus plans to build a nearby state-of-the-art Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine facility so we can expand our reach to patients in this area.”

Dr. Ramon Ylanan and Dr. Larry Balle serve as the primary care physicians as part of the partnership. Dr. Shea Brennan, Dr. Tyler CarlLee, Dr. Wes Cox, Dr. Navin Kilambi, Dr. Rob Martin, Dr. Chad Songy and sports medicine fellow Dr. Ryan Sorrell will also be part of the medical team. Physician Assistant Valerie Whitson will serve Razorback student-athletes in the on-campus clinic.

“As Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine specialists, our priority is helping our patients achieve their goals, and helping Razorback student-athletes fulfill their passion fulfills ours,” Wesley Cox, M.D., Section Chief for UAMS Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine said. “With the state’s largest fellowship-trained orthopaedics team, we bring unmatched clinical expertise and resources in surgical and non-surgical treatment, physical therapy, recovery and training, all while caring for the student-athlete with a human, patient-oriented focus. That’s what is most important.”

UAMS is the state’s only health sciences university, with colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Professions and Public Health; a graduate school; 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 Institute for Digital Health & Innovation. UAMS includes UAMS Health, a statewide health system that encompasses all of UAMS’ clinical enterprise including its hospital, regional clinics and clinics it operates or staffs in cooperation with other providers. UAMS is the only adult Level 1 trauma center in the state. U.S. News & World Report named UAMS Medical Center the state’s Best Hospital; ranked its ear, nose and throat program among the top 50 nationwide; and named six areas as high performing — COPD, colon cancer surgery, heart failure, hip replacement, knee replacement and lung cancer surgery. UAMS has 2,876 students, 898 medical residents and four dental residents. It is the state’s largest public employer with more than 10,000 employees, including 1,200 physicians who provide care to patients at UAMS, its regional campuses, Arkansas Children’s Hospital, the VA Medical Center and Baptist Health. Visit www.uams.edu or www.uamshealth.com. Find us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube or Instagram.

The UAMS Northwest Regional Campus includes 273 medical, pharmacy, nursing and health professions students, 50 medical and pharmacy residents, and 1,000 community-based faculty. The campus has nine clinics including a student-led clinic and physical, occupational and speech therapy. Faculty conduct research to reduce health disparities. Visit www.uams.edu or www.uamshealth.com. Find us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube or Instagram.