JACKSON, Miss. (WJTV) – The University of Mississippi Medical Center opens the state’s first primary care clinic organized with LGBTQ patients in mind. The TEAM Clinic is located at the Jackson Medical Mall and is sponsored by UMMC’s Center for LGBTQ Health.
TEAM stands for Trustworthy, Evidence-based, Affirming and Multidisciplinary Care.
The clinic’s mission is “to ensure every Mississippian has access to accepting, high-quality and holistic primary health care, no matter their gender identity or sexual orientation.”
Patients must make an appointment for the limited hours of operation. Doctors, which include specialists in family and internal medicine, pediatrics, psychology and psychiatry, only see patients the first Friday of every month.
The TEAM Clinic offer wellness visits, endocrine and hormonal treatment, gender affirmative medicine, STD screening and treatment, and behavioral health/psychiatric services and medication management, among others.
“We want to provide a supportive, welcoming and affirming environment, because there’s often fear about opening up and revealing things about yourself to your doctor…By being open and welcoming, we can help patients who need to talk and to be honest with their doctor about their sexual orientation or gender identity.”
Dr. Scott Rodgers, professor and chair of the Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior.
Rodgers and Dr. Leandro Mena, professor and chair of the Department of Population Health Science in the John D. Bower School of Population Health, are co-founders of the Center for LGBTQ Health. Mena serves as medical director of the TEAM Clinic.
In 2015, the Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior opened an LGBTQ specialty clinic offering mental health services at the Jackson Medical Mall.
To schedule an appointment at the TEAM Clinic, call 601-984-2644. For more information, send a query to TEAMclinic@umc.edu. The number and email are for non-emergency use.