JACKSON, MS — The Joseph M. Still (JMS) Burn Center, located at Merit Health Central in Jackson, Mississippi, will close its doors effective Oct. 14, 2022. Merit Health Central made the difficult decision to remove the medical services necessary to support a burn care unit.
Statement from Merit Health Central: “The complex medical needs of burn patients require support from a broad range of specialists – ones you typically associate with burn programs, such as plastic surgery, and others you may not typically think of, like gastroenterology, ophthalmology and urology. The COVID-19 pandemic and the challenging staffing and recruitment environment have made it increasingly difficult for us to recruit the breadth of specialists needed to maintain the burn program, which is the primary reason why we’ve made the difficult decision to close the Burn Center effective October 14, 2022.”
As a result of this decision, the burn center will close on Oct. 14, 2022, and cease all burn services, including burn surgery, ICU and Stepdown and the Burn/Hand Rehabilitative Services Clinic at that time. The burn center will continue to provide care to current patients until that date and then transition care to a nearby facility in the greater Jackson area.
“The JMS Burn Center has been proud to serve the burn, wound, hand and reconstructive needs of Mississippi since 2008 as the only burn care center in the state,” states Dr. Zaheed Hassan, President of JMS Burn Centers, Inc. “Dr. Derek Culnan and his entire burn team at the JMS Burn Center have provided unmatched patient care services to not just this community but the entire state and region. Merit Health Central has pledged its support during this transition as the JMS Burn Center explores other partnership opportunities in the greater Jackson area so we may continue to provide the services we always have. In the coming weeks, we will work closely with Merit Health Central, patients, physicians and staff to safely and effectively transition care for minimal interruption.”
About Joseph M. Still Burn Center
In 1978 Dr. Joseph M. Still dedicated one hospital bed to burn patients and kickstarted what would become Joseph M. Still (JMS) Burn Centers Inc. Today, JMS Burn Centers Inc., falls under Burn and Reconstructive Centers of America (BRCA), a national system of burn care providers dedicated to Healing Patients. Healing Families. Healing Lives.® Headquartered at the nation’s largest individual burn center in Augusta, GA, BRCA is the most extensive system of burn care in the United States. BRCA’s physicians and advanced practice providers treat patients of all ages for various injuries, including thermal, chemical and electrical burns, skin and soft tissue disorders, complex wounds and traumatic extremity injuries. For more information, visit www.burncenters.com.
