Written by Bill Olmsted, Guardian disability insurance specialist with 25 years advising medical residents and fellows.
The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences sponsors 69 ACGME-accredited programs — approximately 25 residencies and 43 fellowships — across approximately 1,400 residents and fellows, plus affiliated programs at Baptist Health-UAMS in North Little Rock and a regional campus in Fayetteville. GME training is distributed across UAMS Medical Center in Little Rock, Arkansas Children’s Hospital, the Central Arkansas VA, and multiple affiliate sites.
This page maps official GME support resources available to UAMS trainees. It also points to one separate planning issue — the GSI disability insurance path available to eligible trainees — that may not come up through standard GME orientation.
This page is maintained by MDGSI as an independent educational resource. It is not produced by, endorsed by, sponsored by, or affiliated with the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.
Official GME and wellbeing resources
UAMS organizes its resident support across several offices and platforms. The resources below are maintained by UAMS directly.
Resident wellness
- UAMS Resident Wellness Program — the main wellness hub for UAMS trainees. Covers counseling services, psychiatric services, mindfulness programs, outreach resources, and wellness contacts.
- Resident Wellness FAQ — how to access free, confidential mental health services, what to expect, hours, and direct phone numbers. Records are kept separate from EPIC.
- Counseling and Therapy Services — individual counseling available to residents and fellows. Appointment line: 501-686-2588.
- UAMS EAP — UAMS-run Employee Assistance Program, a division of the Psychiatric Research Institute.
- UA System EAP and Benefits — UA System-wide EAP (800-542-6021) and UHC MAP (877-660-3806), which includes financial counseling services.
- Drop-in guided mindfulness: available every Monday and Wednesday, 12–1pm, open to all residents, fellows, students, and faculty.
Benefits and compensation
- UAMS HR Benefits — resident-specific benefits information including housestaff disability coverage, health insurance options, and related coverage details.
- Applicant Information and Stipends — current stipend information by PGY level.
Financial wellness and education
- Resident Resources — includes links to financial education resources and program-specific support materials.
GME office
- UAMS GME Office — program listings, GME leadership, and institutional accreditation information.
Finding your way in a distributed system
UAMS GME is spread across multiple teaching sites, affiliated institutions, and a growing regional campus. Official wellness and support resources are centrally maintained through the Resident Wellness Program at medicine.uams.edu/residentwellness/, which is the most reliable starting point regardless of which site a trainee is based at.
For benefits and HR questions, hr.uams.edu/benefits/ is the authoritative source for housestaff-specific information. The UA System benefits page covers EAP and financial counseling that extends across the full system.
One separate planning issue
UAMS support resources are distributed across multiple offices and platforms. Residents navigating that environment may need to actively seek out certain information rather than encountering it automatically. This is one topic that tends not to surface through standard orientation.
Guardian offers a Guaranteed Standard Issue (GSI) disability insurance policy to eligible residents and fellows training at UAMS. It is a Guardian product, not an institutional benefit — individually owned, not employer-provided, and available only during the active training window.
Two things are worth understanding before graduation, not after:
First, eligibility closes at the end of training.
Second, Guardian must be the first individual disability insurance application a trainee submits. An application to another carrier filed first permanently closes access to this option — regardless of health status.
The deeper explanation is in the MDGSI Buyer’s Guide.
Check your eligibility
If you want to verify whether the GSI path is currently available for your UAMS training program, use the eligibility tool.
MDGSI and Guardian are independent companies and not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. For authoritative information about your GME benefits, contact your program office or UAMS HR directly.