When Lea Ann Byrd sees a need, she takes it upon herself to offer a remedy.
And when she looked at Coahoma County and the surrounding towns in the Delta, she saw an area that was being greatly underserved and in need of a new medical facility.
On Saturday afternoon, Byrd and family members and dignitaries gathered to cut the ribbon at the new Byrd Family Medical Clinic, which will have its official opening the last of May or first week of June.
A licensed family nurse practitioner, Byrd pointed to numbers showing Mississippi, and more specifically, the Delta, as having the highest percentage of infant mortality rates in the nation. When coupled with having one of the nation’s highest obesity rates and a large number of residents suffering from heart disease and diabetes, the need was real, she said.
“We lead the nation in chronic health problems,” Byrd said. “And I want to put the heart and care right where it needs to be.”
Byrd’s clinic, which features 14 examination rooms and a large waiting area, will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and is for walk-ins.
The building at 705 State St. previously served as the North Delta Medicine Clinic for Dr. Kenneth Wayne Kellough. The facility has been closed for the last five years.
Clarksdale mayor Chuck Espy said the rebirth of the medical clinic is an example of the starting over with a fresh look theme his election campaign embraced.
“It’s our time and, Doctor, it’s your time today. And the city of Clarksdale is proud of you,” Espy said.
He believes Byrd symbolizes those with “dreams and visions” who are starting businesses and making Clarksdale their home.
“This is the home of dreamers and dreaming big in this town,” Espy said.
Shelby mayor Peggy Mengarelli told Espy that Clarksdale was getting “a wonderful, professional medical person to utilize.” A nurse for 47 years, Mengarelli said she had first-hand knowledge of Byrd’s abilities as they had worked together.
A graduate of the Smith School of Nursing at Delta State University, Byrd worked in Shelby for five years and said, “They taught me a lot.”
She credits Dr. James Warrington Sr. as being her “teacher, mentor and leader.”
At her clinic, Byrd will be assisted by Megan Walls, who will be her lab technician. Beverly Tuminello will be her secretary and Shirley Jones the office manager.
