Southwest Mississippi Regional Medical Center officials held a ribbon-cutting ceremony in November to mark the opening of the newly renovated Southwest Medical Pavilion on Aston Avenue. The medical clinic originally opened in 1974 as the Medical Arts Building, the name familiar to local residents.
“I joked that we could pay for the renovations if we collected a quarter every time someone calls it the Medical Arts Building,” quipped Aaron Price, the chief ambulatory officer.
The former Medical Arts Building was home to a number of clinics over the past five decades before the hospital purchased it.
With a new owner and remodel, it was due for a new name.
“Charla Rowley, Southwest Health System Chief Operating Officer, is patient-experience oriented. It is best for patients to be able to receive care in one building,” Price said.
Dr. Thomas Jefcoat, one of the first physicians to move into the building in 1974, recalled the early days of the hospital and the Medical Arts Building.
“When the hospital was built in 1969, a group of physicians, including Drs. Julian Janes and Ralph Brock, opened the Medical Arts Building and started recruiting other doctors to join them in the building,” he said.
At that time, doctors had offices in different locations in town. As other doctors were added, the building needed to be expanded. Over the years, wings were added to the north and east. In the mid-1980s, an outpatient surgery center was added.
Over time, the doctors moved out, building offices elsewhere. When the McComb Children’s Clinic built its new facility on Llewellyn Avenue and moved out on Sept. 1, 2017, the old building seemed empty.
With the encouragement of Jefcoat and Rowley, the hospital board saw the potential of the building and finally bought the entire space.
“We had some clinics in the building, and we had plans to gradually remodel the space. Sometimes God decides to speed up our plans,” Price said.
“We had a fire on June 9, 2022. It was a Saturday, and I got a call. I thought it was a false alarm, but I went down to check. It was not a false alarm.
Disasters are obviously terrible, but they do give us an opportunity to see how we can unite. We really came together.
By Tuesday, we had the clinics set up on the fifth and sixth floors of the hospital. We actually only missed one day of patient care.”
The fire accelerated the remodel timeline.
“We took the opportunity to do all of the remodel at one time. It took us about 18 months to complete the project,” Price said.
Plenty of people were on hand for the ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Southwest Medical Pavilion. (Photo by Matt Williamson. Copyright 2025, Emmerich Newspapers, Inc.)
The Southwest Medical Pavilion houses Gastroenterology Associates, Mississippi Orthopedic Center, Premier Medical Clinic, Serenity Psychiatric Outpatient, Southwest Imaging Center, Southwest Pulmonary Medicine and Southwest Surgical.
The Imaging Center offers X-rays, mammography and bone density tests. It will soon offer CT scans and ultrasound services.
Wound care by MedCentris, Interventional Spine and Sports Institute and pain management services are also offered at the pavilion.
The facility temporarily houses the medical residency program until it moves into a building across the street from the hospital.
“We are completely renovating the old orthopedic clinic and sleep clinic. We will be moving the sleep clinic, and the medical residency program will be housed in that space,” Price said. “We are very excited about that program. We will be adding to the program every year with the ultimate goal of 18 residents.”
Southwest Medical Pavilion is full right now, but space will become available once the residency program moves.
“It is the first time in a long time that the building has been full,” Price said.
A building full of physicians was a good idea years ago, and the concept is continuing to serve Southwest Mississippi residents, Price said.
“We are dedicated to having an easy experience for patients,” he said. “They are able to move between services without leaving the building, and we have an employee at a desk by the door to help people find the right office. We have focused on clear signage so that patients can find their way.”
