The MIND Center’s new centralized facility moves forward with $1 million donation
Published on Monday, February 10, 2025
By: Rachel Vanderford, rvanderford@umc.edu
The Memory Impairment and Neurodegenerative Dementia Center, commonly known as The MIND Center, is making significant progress in its plan to build a new centralized facility with a $1 million donation from longtime supporter Michael E. Johnson of Madison. His contribution adds to the lead gift made by Jean Reed Adams in honor of her late husband, Fred R. Adams Jr.
The $1 million contribution is Johnson’s largest individual gift to the center and follows his previous personal donation of $100,000 to support The MIND Center’s collaborative study with the Mayo Clinic. The Johnson family has supported The MIND Center since 2015 through The Larry and Michael Johnson Family Foundation. In recognition of this generous donation, Johnson received naming rights for the first-floor lobby in the new facility.
“We haven’t settled on exactly what to name it, yet, but it will be a family decision,” he said. “I’m honored for the opportunity, but it’s not about me. I just want to help and support the important work they are doing.”
The Fred R. Adams Jr. MIND Center and Geriatric Clinic will unite the center’s clinical services, which are currently spread out between UMMC’s River Chase, Grant’s Ferry, Flowood Family Medicine and Colony Park South locations. Its pillars of research, education and clinical care will all come together under one roof at 1405 North State Street, just down the road from the Medical Center’s main campus in Jackson.
The four-story, 30,000-square-foot facility will include 25 exam rooms, consultation and therapy spaces, and an entire floor dedicated to research, where The UMMC MIND Center-Mayo Clinic Study of Aging will be based. Designed to support older adults and patients with dementia, the building will feature wide hallways, bright-colored walls for orientation and acoustic treatments to aid those with hearing impairments.
Johnson emphasized that his donation was motivated by the center’s impact and ongoing leadership in dementia research and care. “Over the years, I’ve watched Dr. [Thomas] Mosley and his team spearhead such significant advancements in this area of care. Knowing first-hand what it is like when a family member has Alzheimer’s, I want to support their work however I can. When I heard about the centralized clinic, I thought it was an excellent idea,” he said.
Mosley, director and Robbie and Dudley Hughes MIND Center chair, highlighted the clinic’s importance in meeting the rising demand for Alzheimer’s and dementia care. “By 2025, the number of Mississippians diagnosed with these diseases is expected to grow to 65,000. This clinic is pivotal to providing care for those patients and will be a model for delivering care tailored to the needs of older adults and their families,” he said.
The new facility expects to see more than 6,300 patient visits annually, offering a wide range of services, including geriatric primary care, dementia care and bone density scanning. The clinic’s multidisciplinary team will include geriatricians, neurologists, psychiatrists, neuropsychologists, therapists, nurse practitioners, nurse case managers and social workers. The inclusion of onsite radiology and lab services will alleviate the strain of traveling to multiple locations to complete one health assessment.
Dr. Kimberly Tarver, director of clinical services for The MIND Center, notes that every element of the facility has been designed to meet the unique needs of its patient population.
“There will be larger exam rooms so that families and caregivers can comfortably participate in appointments,” she said. “Larger training rooms will allow our geriatricians and dementia specialists to work together along with the multidisciplinary team of physicians. This diverse team will include advanced practice providers, nurses and social workers and multiple training levels of learners whether they be geriatrics fellows or medical students, interns and residents in internal medicine, family medicine, neurology or psychiatry. Our hope is to have as many practicing physicians in our state as possible to experience some training in our multidisciplinary clinics.”
The plans also include a spacious community room where The MIND Center will host its monthly Caregiver Support Group and other educational events. Private spaces will also be available for counseling and consultations on legal and financial planning as well as other considerations related to dementia care.
“The ability for this facility to increase the number of people they can see under one roof will not only improve the overall health of older adults in Mississippi, but the ripple effect of their research and education improves lives everywhere,” Johnson said. “In a place that isn’t always associated with the best health, the important work being done at UMMC and The MIND Center is really something to be proud of.”
“We are very grateful to Michael and the Larry and Michael Johnson Family Foundation for their continued investment in The MIND Center” said Melissa Robinson, senior director of principal gifts in the UMMC Office of Development. “This new centralized facility is only possible because of philanthropic support. Because of the generous support of our donors like Michael, this clinic has become a reality. His belief in our mission makes it possible to build a space where care, compassion and research can flourish—transforming the lives of many who need it most.”
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To learn about ways to give, contact Lee Anne Bryan, director of philanthropy and engagement-MIND Center, at 601-815-4299 or lbryan@umc.edu.