August 18, 2026
Contact: Brian Consiglio, consigliob@missouri.edu
Photo by Justin Kelley
The University of Missouri is reshaping primary care in Missouri while preparing more health care providers to serve communities across the state.
Mizzou has opened Missouri’s first nursing-led primary care clinic in Holts Summit, where faculty from the Sinclair School of Nursing provide primary care while mentoring graduate nursing students preparing to become advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs).
APRNs are highly trained health care providers who diagnose illnesses, prescribe medications and help manage chronic and acute conditions. These licensed clinicians provide many of the same primary care services as physicians. APRNs have earned master’s or doctoral degrees in nursing, so their advanced training prepares them to provide comprehensive, high-level primary care.
As many Missouri communities struggle to recruit and retain health care providers, the clinic creates another pathway for timely, high-quality care while strengthening the state’s health care workforce.
“We are proud that nurses from Mizzou are helping expand access to care for Missourians, and supporting the needs of Missourians is what our flagship, land-grant university is all about,” Julie Miller, an assistant teaching professor in the Sinclair School of Nursing who works at the clinic, said. “Missouri has a significant need for greater access to health care, and we believe nurses, specifically advanced practice trained nurses, at Mizzou can be an important part of the solution. By educating more providers and creating new pathways to care, Mizzou is helping strengthen the state’s health care workforce.”
The clinic, which opened in May, is connected to MU Health Care’s electronic health record network, which allows providers at the clinic to coordinate care seamlessly.
The clinic exemplifies the Missouri Method, the university’s philosophy of learning by doing. By working with experienced faculty to care for patients in real-world clinical settings, graduate nursing students will enter the workforce ready to serve communities across Missouri and beyond.
“This is an exciting proof-of-concept to see if this new pathway for providing primary care can be replicated in different parts of the state,” Miller said. “While our nurses are trained and educated at Mizzou, their impact is felt throughout Missouri.”
