ABOUT THIS ISSUE Dear Readers,
Mental illness and substance abuse cause tremendous suffering for patients
and their families.
Further, these brain diseases cause avoidable deaths and are among the
leading causes of disability for our state and nation. They affect all sorts of people Dan Rahn
— rich and poor, educated and uneducated, as well as those who are otherwise healthy and those with other diseases.
Unfortunately, the causes of these diseases and the treatments of patients
with these diseases are complex with much still unknown.
Twenty years ago, our state had very limited resources to help patients and
their families with mental disorders and substance abuse. Many of our patients G. Richard Smith
UAMS team members are striving every day to prevent, treat and understand these disorders.
required leaving the state for the care that they needed, especially for the most
complex conditions.
Since that time UAMS and many advocates and donors have made extensive commitments to
help the UAMS Psychiatric Research Institute become not only a statewide resource, but a regional and national resource for the diagnosis, treatment and research of these devastating mental illnesses.
With the addition of the Psychiatric Research Institute and the work done by all our colleagues
across all units including our northwest Arkansas campus, UAMS team members are striving every day to prevent, treat and understand these disorders and reduce the burden of these illnesses for our patients and families. We hope you find this issue of the Journal and the work of our dedicated faculty and staff interesting and helpful.
Dan Rahn, M.D. Chancellor, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
2
www.uamshealth
com
G. Richard Smith, M.D. Dean, College of Medicine Vice Chancellor, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
UNIVERSITY OF ARK ANSAS FOR MEDICAL SCIENCES