This summer, residents in the Soulsville community will be able to access convenient and affordable healthcare thanks to the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC), the Soulsville Foundation, and the Kemmons Wilson Family Foundation.
The UTHSC Health Hub: Soulsville will be located at 870 East McLemore Avenue. UTHSC officials say the primary care facility will take a “neighborhood approach to healthcare,” and serve adults and children.
“The UTHSC Health Hub: Soulsville will address health and social needs of the community through individualized and empowering care that builds on existing community strengths and assets,” Jim Bailey, MD, executive director of the Tennessee Population Health Consortium and Robert S. Pearce Endowed Chair in Internal Medicine at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, said in a joint statement. “UT Health Science Center seeks to work in partnership with the residents of Soulsville to meet essential health needs and foster wellness and abundant life in the community.”
Residents will be able to access health coaching, school nursing serving three community schools, and youth intervention services. Mental health counseling will also be available after the program’s second year.
The health hub will also offer screening for obesity, hypertension, diabetes, and social needs. Individual and group health coaching for diabetes prevention and self-management and tobacco cessation will be available.
“The care will be targeted to the residents of Soulsville, and personnel for the hub will be from the Soulsville community or deeply rooted in the community,” UTHSC said in the statement.
UTHSC officials say the Soulsville center will use the same approach used at their other facilities in Uptown at 534 North Second Street and the ShelbyCares facility located in the Westwood neighborhood at 3358 South 3rd Street.
“Health coaches at these two facilities have completed more than 4,000 total visits, more than 2,000 individual coaching visits, and served more than 1,000 unique patients,” UTHSC said.
Soulsville Foundation CEO Pat Mitchell Worley says Soulsville has “a lot to be proud of,” but there is also a need for access to healthcare. Worley said she is “thrilled” to partner with UTHSC on this project.
“Their commitment goes beyond offering just health education — they’re bringing essential primary care and mental wellness services directly to our students and neighbors. We are on a shared mission to help Soulsville USA thrive,” Worley said.
The health hub will open this summer in a temporary location, while the permanent space at 870 East McLemore Avenue is being renovated.