Arkansas Children’s Hospital Jonesboro Clinic to Expand Services in Northeast Arkansas

Marcy Doderer, president and CEO of Arkansas Children’s, announced today that Arkansas Children’s Hospital Jonesboro Clinic will expand pediatric subspecialty care.

Arkansas Children’s Foundation Board member Kim Fowler and her husband Chris Fowler, President of Fowler Foods, Inc. donated $750,000 to Arkansas Children’s Foundation. The funds were used to purchase the building that houses the Arkansas Children’s Hospital Jonesboro Clinic located at 520 Carson Street in Jonesboro. In 2015, Kim and Chris Fowler gave $250,000 to create the Fowler Diagnostic Center bringing their cumulative total giving to $1 million in support of the Arkansas Children’s Hospital Jonesboro Clinic.

“Serving the children of Arkansas is a top priority for our family,” said Kim. “By donating the funds to support the purchase of the Arkansas Children’s Hospital Jonesboro Clinic, we know we’ve made a positive investment for future generations as well as provide greater access to specialized pediatric healthcare for children in the region.”

Northeast Arkansas has the third largest concentration of children in the state with approximately 36 children per square mile. More than 99,000 children live in the Northeast Arkansas region with 1 in 5 children living in poverty. Arkansas Children’s Hospital Jonesboro Clinic saves approximately 700,000 minutes of patient travel time to Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock each year.

Over the last two years, Arkansas Children’s Hospital Jonesboro Clinic has experienced more than 5,000 patient visits.

“Kim and Chris Fowler have been longtime supporters of Arkansas Children’s,” said Fred Scarborough, president of Arkansas Children’s Foundation. “This strategic gift will allow Arkansas Children’s to better serve patients and families in the Northeast Arkansas region and alleviate barriers so that families may receive care close to home.”

Since the opening of the Arkansas Children’s Hospital Jonesboro Clinic in 2012, the clinic has experienced a 60 percent increase in the volume of patient visits.

The expansion of services will include a second full-time specialist as well as a pediatric audiologist based in Jonesboro and additional diagnostic and ancillary services such as lab, audiology and respiratory testing will be provided through the Fowler Diagnostic Center. The clinic expansion will also include space for speech, physical and occupational therapy.

Existing services in the Jonesboro Clinic include a full-time pediatric neurologist, led by Dr. Stephen Bates, as well as pediatric care for urology, cardiology, neurology, genetics, infectious disease, ear, nose and throat and more.  

The Arkansas Children’s Hospital Jonesboro Clinic will undergo a renovation to the 8,000 sq. feet facility and the system will partner with community organizations to address additional pediatric healthcare needs in the region.