Hey everybody. My name is Phillip Shepherd. I’m a local real estate agent located right here in Northwest Arkansas. Today, we’re talking about all things medical: hospitals, the college, children’s hospitals, VA hospitals, and all related things.
Northwest Arkansas has some of the finest medical facilities in the country, including the Arkansas Children’s Northwest Hospital, Mercy Hospital NWA, Washington Regional, and Fayetteville VA Medical Center. In addition, the Alice L. Walton School of Medicine is poised to raise the standards higher.
People choose to make us their destination for excellent medical services. If you read through this article, you’ll learn just why. So, let’s talk about that.
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Arkansas Children’s Northwest Hospital
I would argue that one of the most important things about Northwest Arkansas when it comes to the medical thing around here, all the hospitals and everything, is that we have a nationally renowned children’s hospital located right here.
I’m not too privy to all the different awards it’s won, but I know that people often come to Northwest Arkansas, particularly for this hospital.
A lot of times, when I talk to people with younger children that are moving to Northwest Arkansas, a big factor for them moving here is that we have a children’s hospital.
One of the big draws around here is that we have a massive facility dedicated to pediatrics, and they are nationally acclaimed. They won many awards and are in the top percentage of the most prestigious children’s hospitals in America.
Often, people come here, wondering if they have children that may have issues, potentially whether there is a children’s hospital locally in the area.
The answer is yes.
A lot of places in America don’t always have children’s hospitals, especially when you start getting out to more rural areas. But luckily, and just kind of shows the growth of the whole area, we do have a children’s hospital, and it is dearly loved, and people use it in any capacity they need.
Northwest Arkansas has won several awards – Architecture in Northwest Arkansas
Mercy Hospital Northwest Arkansas
Number two is Mercy Hospital in Northwest Arkansas. They have a large hospital around the Rogers Lowell area. And on top of that, they have many walk-in centers across Northwest Arkansas.
So, if you’re in the area, you’re going to see a bunch of Mercy walk-in centers. They have them all around, but their main headquarters is located right around Rogers.
The really cool thing about this specific hospital is that they just announced they’re going to expand to 500 million growth onto that hospital in Rogers. So they’re actually adding about 400 different hospital beds to the whole area.
They will also have a large cancer research center, a cancer treatment center, and many other things. They’re going to start that project here very soon, and it’s going to be another major hospital located right in Northwest Arkansas.
Part of the reason they’re doing this is that they know NWA is on a massive pathway and that it’s a very medical-friendly area. It’s just growing exponentially when it comes to medical and all sorts of different research coming up here.
But everything medical is being focused on right here in Northwest Arkansas. Mercy saw that growth pattern and decided that they were going to invest 500 million back into NWA, back into their actual hospital. They’ll see that growth pattern developing in the next 10 to 15 or 20 years.
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Washington Regional
Thirdly, we have Washington regional hospital. It’s the largest hospital in Northwest Arkansas, and they have everything under the sun when it comes to what you would need from a hospital.
They offer all kinds of services–anything you could need from the hospital. Follow this link to check out everything they offer because I’m sure you’ll find something that they will fit within their criteria within that hospital itself.
I have a lot of friends who work there, whether the nurses or medicals or anything, when it comes to the doctoral side or whatever the case is, and one of the things that I’ve noticed around Northwest Arkansas, at least on the medical side, is people love working around the area.
I think it’s partially because we have such a unique area between a blend of outdoor-indoor things and things of fun to do around here. A lot of times, nurses and doctors in larger cities just literally work and go home.
At least around Northwest Arkansas, there’s a better work-life balance around here. And so that’s one thing I noticed in Washington Regional and other hospitals in the area. They really do love their jobs.
Planning to move to NWA? Looking for opportunities? How to Find a Job In Northwest Arkansas?
Fayetteville VA Medical Center
Number four is the full-service veterans’ hospital located in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Now, there aren’t veteran hospitals all across the states, and that’s one thing I do find sad because veterans are very important to America.
However, Fayetteville does have a veteran’s hospital located right here in NWA. And so, if you are a veteran and you are looking to move to different parts of America, just know that you’ll have a full-service hospital right here for you.
I do know a lot of people that are veterans that go there, specifically people that I’m friends with. It’s very easy to access. They go there and get blood work done and get full service of anything they need at any point. They get great health benefits as well.
This is assuredly one of the perks of being in NWA. There’s a veterans’ hospital right here, literally in your back door.
Alice L. Walton School of Medicine
When it comes to the medical side of NWA, there are a lot of other hospitals, walk-in centers, and emergency clinics. We know that there’s a plethora of those all around the whole area. You can drive a very short distance and be in an emergency place right away.
But the one thing I want to focus on here is a very research-heavy, college-focused university area altogether. They have so many degrees dedicated to the medical field, whether nursing, pharmacy, or if you want to be in medicine to become a doctor, they have all that laid out because they have a full research facility.
A lot of people come here for residency around the hospitals. But the really cool thing is that Alice Walton, an heir of the Walton Foundation, has a foundation called the Alice Walton foundation that’s developing a state-of-the-art medical college right in Bentonville, Arkansas.
It’s going to be called the Alice Walton School of Medicine. The first classes will be offered in 2025, and the college will be dedicated to holistic self-care practices.
This is currently still being fleshed out. But here’s my theory about this.
The medical field is changing, and Alice Walton is trying to get ahead of the curb and trying to educate people, future doctors, and future nurses on how to train and teach people how to be more self-care and how to be more holistic and the way that they do medicine versus the opposite way, so to speak.
One of the things I find interesting is that this will be kind of a correlation thing. Walmart is heavily focusing now on home health and health stores inside of Walmart. I think that will be one of the focuses and pushes in the next couple of years.
The state of art college will teach basically new ways of doing medicine. Teaching those things will then be integrated into Walmart and other big areas of the medical field to help facilitate and grow that whole new area of medicine.
That’s been kind of under the radar and kind of under the rug for so many years. The medical industry hasn’t changed drastically since a long time ago, but it has changed a lot in the last couple of years. And so it’s interesting to see this whole new wave of medicine coming.
I’m not privy to this because I’m not in the medical field, but I do see the actual waves of change coming. And I know Alice Walton is a big believer in holistic medicine and different ways of doing things. When it comes to doing new things, when it comes to Walmart and just changing everything, she’s well known for that.
So, it’s not surprising that she wants to get into the medical field because, as an entrepreneur like her, she sees that she has the ability to make those changes. She sees change happening, and she’s willing to put some weight behind it, build a massive college near Crystal Bridges, and dedicate a whole facility to holistic medicine and all new waves of medicine.
That’s going to be integrated into Walmart, I assume, or just taking these new people, nurses, and doctors and putting them out into the field so they can grow and teach other people as well.
Conclusion
Northwest Arkansas is one of the country’s leaders in medical care, thanks to its specialized hospitals and medical centers. Its dedication to this field is also seeing it push boundaries with a new medical college on the rise, coupled with a grand vision for medicine.
These medical facilities and quality of care are among the top reasons people come to Northwest Arkansas. Some stay for intermittent periods of treatment while others make a permanent move to be closer to excellent healthcare.
If you are coming down to Northwest Arkansas, download my three-day itinerary. Maybe you’re an adventurer. Maybe you’re a sportsperson. Maybe you have kids. Maybe you’re a sightseer. Maybe you’re a foodie. Download my three-day itinerary. It’ll save so much time coming down here with that three-day itinerary.
Also, when you do come down here, definitely give me a call cos I can give you the $10 tour, kind of show you around the whole area. And then we can check out some homes for sale or for rent and see how far your dollar will go in Northwest Arkansas compared to where you’re coming from.