07/24/2025
.
In Arkansas, a New Med School Reimagines Health Care With a Whole-Patient Approach
Last week, the doors opened to Alice L. Walton School of Medicine in Bentonville, Arkansas, a medical school named after and opened by the world’s richest woman. But what makes this school different isn’t just its founder or the fact that its first five cohorts are getting a tuition-free education; it’s also the curriculum.
“They will get all the science and disease knowledge they need to manage the ‘sick-care’ side of things,” Walton, who was motivated to start the school by her own health experiences, told Time magazine. But students will also get much more: “I wanted to create a school that really gives doctors the ability to focus on how to keep their patients healthy.”
Unlike many traditional programs, the inclusive curriculum prioritizes preventative health as well as whole-patient principles that integrate physical, behavioral, spiritual, and socioeconomic aspects of health into medical training. Design-wise, the school also stands out, with amenities such as healing gardens, a rooftop park, and outdoor classrooms reflecting the links between healing, art, nature, and science.
The goal is to create a new pipeline of physicians who can address health care challenges with more empathy, particularly in medically underserved and rural communities. Dr. Sharmila Makhija, the school’s founding dean and CEO added: “It’s going to be really exciting and fun to see what happens.”
