Arkansas’ first 65 Prime+ by Mercy clinic, located at 6801 Rogers Ave., Suite 107 in Fort Smith, is now open for patient care. 65 Prime+ by Mercy – Tower West is a clinic geared toward Medicare patients, those 65 and older.
The new clinic, located in the former Convenient Care at Mercy Tower West, offers an expanded primary care experience with longer and more frequent appointment times, ensuring that patients have ample time to discuss all their health care needs with Dr. Allen Beachy, Dr. Becky Yarborough and Tessa Tran, APRN-CNP.
Members of the Fort Smith Regional Chamber of Commerce joined Mercy leaders and board members Oct. 3 for a blessing and ceremonial ribbon cutting at the 4,571-square-foot clinic, which opened to patients Oct. 1.
65 Prime+ providers are supported by a registered nurse and care navigator. Nurses provide clinical support to patients during visits and care between visits, while the care navigator helps coordinate all other aspects of the patient’s care. That could include referrals to specialists, therapists or other providers, setting up tests or procedures, obtaining prescriptions and medical equipment and making sure that all preventive care like immunizations, lab tests and cancer screenings are obtained.
“When we started this planning process about 18 months ago, at that time we felt it was very important to make sure we had a central location on this campus to make it as convenient as possible for these patients,” said Steve Gebhart, Mercy’s vice president of operations. With departments such as imaging, lab services, ultrasound, MRI and more all located at Mercy Tower West, “It’s kind of like a one-stop shop for these patients, and we felt like that was important,” Gebhart said.
“All of this teamwork is going to give us more time with our patients; that’s going to be the most important thing,” said Dr. Yarborough added. “That’s what patients always crave – a little extra time with the provider to assess their needs and be able to identify their problems early and more closely follow their chronic conditions, meet their wellness goals and more.”
Other specialized accommodations include examination chairs that recline, allowing the patient to feel more comfortable during their visits. Additionally, reserved parking and a covered drop-off area make appointments easier for patients.
Some examples of treatments that can be administered at 65 Prime+ by Mercy include flu shots and other immunizations; Medicare annual wellness visits; general medical evaluations and wellness exams; minor illnesses and injuries, including strains, sprains and fractures; monitoring of chronic conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, incontinence, osteoporosis, high cholesterol and more; care for Alzheimer’s disease, dementia and early memory loss; and care for Parkinson’s disease and other movement disorders.
Patients seeking an appointment at 65 Prime Plus by Mercy – Tower West can call (479) 274-3350.
Mercy, one of the 20 largest U.S. health systems and named the top large system in the U.S. for excellent patient experience by NRC Health, serves millions annually with nationally recognized care and one of the nation’s largest and highest performing Accountable Care Organizations in quality and cost. Mercy is a highly integrated, multi-state health care system including more than 50 acute care and specialty (heart, children’s, orthopedic and rehab) hospitals, convenient and urgent care locations, imaging centers and pharmacies. Mercy has over 900 physician practice locations and outpatient facilities, more than 4,500 physicians and advanced practitioners and 50,000 co-workers serving patients and families across Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma. Mercy also has clinics, outpatient services and outreach ministries in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. In fiscal year 2023 alone, Mercy provided more than half a billion dollars of free care and other community benefits, including traditional charity care and unreimbursed Medicaid.
