$651,000 grant expands children’s clinic

LOWELL — A threeyear, $651,000 grant to the Schmieding Developmental Center for children with disabilities and other complex health needs will help recruit providers and double the number of patient visits, the clinic announced Tuesday.

The grant came from the Schmieding Foundation, which also helped create the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences-run center more than 20 years ago. Mary Ann Scott, a neuropsychology professor and section chief for the center, said the grant allows it to hire a developmental pediatrician, a neuropsychologist and others and care for more children.

“We’re really excited that this can be just what we need to move things forward,” Scott said. “With the growth in Northwest Arkansas, it’s coming at a critical time.”

The center provides assessments and health care for children up to age 18 with such conditions as epilepsy, autism, concussions and some types of cancer, according to a news release from the university.

The center’s website and administrative services manager said it hosts more than 1,600 visits with all patients each year and has a waiting list more than a year long for new patients.

Scott said the grant will essentially double the half-dozen staff members, in part by fully covering one- or twoyear fellowships pediatric psychologists need to become fully licensed.

Ruben Villarreal, the adminstrative manager, said in an email medical visits could soar to almost 3,600 yearly and consultation visits for Arkansas Children’s Hospital patients could rise from 200 a year to 1,200.

Schmieding Foundation President Gilda Underwood said the organization is committed to supporting the people caring for the region’s children. The foundation also gave $1 million in 2016 toward the construction of the Arkansas Children’s Northwest hospital in Springdale, which opened this year.

“We are pleased that Dr. Mary Ann Scott and her team are here and provide comprehensive evaluations and treatment recommendations so their families know how to help their child grow under challenging conditions,” Underwood said.

Arkansas Children’s Northwest didn’t return a request for comment Tuesday afternoon.

The Schmieding center sits north of the J.B. Hunt Transport Services headquarters near Interstate 49. It’s separate from the Schmieding Center for Senior Health and Education off North Thompson Street in Springdale.

The children’s center accepts patients regardless of their ability to pay and will help them sign up for Medicaid if eligible or find other ways to cover the center’s services, Scott said.

Scott and Dr. Rick Barr, chairman of the university’s Department of Pediatrics and associate dean for child health at its College of Medicine, said they were grateful to the Schmieding foundation for its support.

“This new grant will help the Schmieding Developmental Center at UAMS recruit and retrain top faculty to deliver expert care to kids with developmental challenges,” Barr said in a written statement.

The center’s website and administrative services manager said it hosts more than 1,600 visits with all patients each year and has a waiting list more than a year long for new patients.