- The new Center will be the first and only such facility in Mississippi.
After years of waiting and planning, the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) this week announced that construction for the Alyce G. Clarke Center for Medically Fragile Children is officially underway. It is the first and only such facility in Mississippi.
The Center will serve patients younger than 19 who need skilled care because of the complexity of their medical conditions. According to UMMC, the 20-bed facility will have two wings with a common area that will serve as a living room space. Patients at the center will range from newborns who may not have been able to wean off ventilators and need an additional 60 to 90 days to adolescents 19 or younger recovering from accidents or living with conditions that require skilled nursing care.
The Center will also be a place where parents can learn how to care for their medically fragile children before taking them home, said Dr. Alan Jones, associate vice chancellor for health affairs at UMMC. It will also be a bridge from pediatric inpatient care to home for patients and their parents.
“Parents need to be comfortable with their children’s medical equipment, and troubleshooting will need to be done so they know how to handle any issues at home,” Jones said. “That can take time. Alarms on equipment may not go off every day or even every week. We want parents to be comfortable in any scenario that might arise.”
The Center has been in the works since the early 2000s. The project received a boost in 2019 when the Legislature directed $12.5 million in state bonds funds to assist in paying for the costs associated with the construction, furnishing, and equipping of the center. The bill, HB 1160, was signed into law by former Governor Phil Bryant. An additional $2 million in bonds were issued in 2020.
As previously reported, former First Lady Deborah Bryant and many others advocated for the Center, building relationships, fundraising, and ultimately working to pass the legislation that would support building the children’s center in conjunction with UMMC.
READ MORE: Families, state to benefit from Mississippi Center for Medically Fragile Children
Adorning the new Center will be the name of former State Representative Alyce Clarke. Clarke, the first black woman to serve in the Mississippi Legislature, was a key advocate for the project, seeking to ensure that such a facility be located in the Jackson metro area.
Ground was broken on the project in December 2019, but the COVID-19 pandemic slowed the progress.
“The pandemic did affect our progress,” Jones said. “There were supply chain issues and limited numbers of some resources, and then costs rose. We had to redo our original plans to make sure we had the necessary funds. After the pandemic, we got back on track.”
Construction is now expected to be completed by fall 2025.
Frank Corder
