The Sky's the Limit
/Dr. Amy Leigh Overton-McCoy has a passion for taking care of others and helping people in need.
by LINDSEY MCMILLAN
photo by ALAMOND PHOTOGRAPHY
Amy Leigh Overton-McCoy, PhD, GNP-BC, APRN, has a love and passion for helping others. She realized this at an early age when she was 14 years old and a junior volunteer, or “Candy Striper” at Hope Medical Park Hospital in Hope, Arkansas. This early call was further solidified when as a junior at Nevada High School where she was part of the inaugural Medical Applications of Science for Health (M*A*S*H) program begun by Dr. Herbert Wren, longtime Texarkana physician.
Amy Leigh was named the Murphy Endowed Chair for Rural Aging Leadership and Policy during a ceremony on January 16 at UAMS in Little Rock. With her are guest speaker, Dr. Mark Wren (Medical Director of Encompass Rehabilitation Hospital of Texarkana, Associate Medical Director of CHRISTUS St. Michael’s Wound Clinic and Founder/President of Seniors4Senior Care of America and Dr. Jeanne Wei (chair of Reynolds Department of Geriatrics and executive director of Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging). (Photo provided by UAMS photographer, Bryan Clifton)
The year was 1990 and along with other high school students, Amy Leigh learned about various health care practices through the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS). There was no doubt in her mind that entering the field of nursing was her career calling as it naturally fit her personality. She credits her high school teachers, counselors and Red River Technical College (now the University of Arkansas at Hope-Texarkana) with best preparing her as she was able to take college courses while still in high school. After receiving her Associate of Arts degree at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, she earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 1996. She then received a Master of Nursing Science in 2000 allowing her to become a nurse practitioner specializing in Geriatrics.
Throughout her training she also worked in the research arena, first as an assistant while at UAMS and later with the Institute on Aging as a research project director. In addition, she served as the director of compliance for Southwest Arkansas Development Council Home Health.
Being a mom is Amy Leigh’s main hobby, and she was grateful that her two sons, Taylor and Will, and her husband, John McCoy, attended the recent investiture held in her honor. (Photo provided by UAMS photographer, Bryan Clifton)
Amy Leigh entered clinical work at various hospitals and later became the Director of the UAMS Centers on Aging. In this capacity as both geriatric nurse practitioner and administrator, she helps countless senior patients across the state. She has worked as a health care provider with the Wadley Senior Clinic since it began in 2013 and also assists nursing students in completing preceptorships, as well as presenting at conferences and consulting work in the area of geriatrics. In 2010, she earned her PhD in Psychology. Amy Leigh’s passion is for providing health care to the older adult. She explains, “I feel like it’s a calling from God to try to make the end of life better than the beginning of life.” She makes reference to being a “kindred soul” to older patients and this has no doubt helped her succeed in her career. She was recently named the Murphy Endowed Chair for Rural Aging Leadership and Policy. Her official investiture with UAMS was held in Little Rock on January 16. This distinguished honor is particularly special for Amy Leigh since her association with UAMS is so longstanding.
A native of Nevada County, Arkansas, Amy Leigh has always had a love for rural communities. So many in local areas surrounding Texarkana, Hope, as well as Idabel, Oklahoma, are in need of quality health care and resources. The geriatric or senior patient numbers are increasing faster than any other age group, therefore requiring more providers and services. Amy Leigh strongly believes in the senior’s availability to self-manage and prevent many diseases which afflict older individuals such as diabetes and ones which are affected by issues with diet and mobility. Wearing many different hats, she has a “mission to serve” senior patients in a variety of areas, including those in research, clinical care and education. Her center partners with many different community groups such as Harvest Regional Food Bank, Texarkana Center on Aging, Hunger Relief Alliance, and Senior Outreach and the SNAP program. Proper screening and implementation of services is essential for a positive health impact long-term. She recalls asking herself several years ago why the senior health rank was so low in Arkansas. Ranking 50th in the nation in food and securities, Amy Leigh and colleagues made it their mission to improve this area, and since then, there has been a 30% improvement in overall geriatric health. She says, “We continue to influence policy to help better outcomes for older adults and work on educating health care educators, students and providers.”
Amy Leigh also has been involved in mission work in Mexico and Central and South America. Her other awards and honors include being voted 2016 Best Health Care Professional in Geriatrics by AY Magazine and named to the Great 100 Nurses Foundation annual list in 2017. Helping senior citizens care for themselves each day through education and practice, the Centers also secure funding for existing and future programs to improve their health. Amy Leigh also works with Arkansas High School Advanced Placement students with interests in the medical field. This she says stems from her love and pride of being part of the M*A*S*H program, as high school programs such as these ensure future medical training. “It’s important to love what you do, and mine is taking care of others and helping people. I advise all students to follow their love and passion for what they want to do as the sky’s the limit,” she admits.
Amy Leigh and her husband, John McCoy, are parents to two sons. Will is a fifth grader at Trice Elementary and Taylor a junior at Arkansas High. Married for 23 years, she and John enjoy a variety of outdoor activities with their sons, and Amy Leigh states that her main hobby is just being a mom. She also enjoys race walking and is part of Women Run Texarkana, a nonprofit group started last year in an effort to promote healthy behavior for women with a 10-week free training program which begins in March. Open to women of all ages, this group meets twice weekly in the evenings and culminates in participating in a 5K race. Amy Leigh believes in setting a good example for healthy behavior that will last a lifetime. Clearly, she has found her passion: one of love for career, patients, family and community.
