Dr. Jasmin R. Owens Chapman, DDS, Chief Executive Officer of Jackson-Hinds Comprehensive Health Center (JHCHC), interviewed with the Our Health Stories team on April 14, 2023, and January 10, 2024. Committed to health equity and justice, Dr. Chapman breathed new life into the community health center movement. During Chapman’s 40+ years of service at JHCHC, she increased access to care in rural and urban Mississippi with new sites, school-based clinics, mobile units, and a partnership with the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC).
“So here I am, a woman, following people such as Dr. [James] Anderson, Dr. [Aaron] Shirley, Dr. [Robert] Smith, men who were heroes in this movement.”
— Dr. Jasmin Chapman
Early life
Jasmin Rena Owens Chapman was born on December 31, 1954 in Terry, Mississippi. During this time, Jim Crow dictated many aspects of life for Black Mississippians. The support from her parents, siblings, and the close-knit but segregated rural Terry community shielded Chapman from disempowerment.
“My dad made each one of us think that there was something special that each one of us could do that the rest could not do, as well. And for me, it was riding horses,” said Chapman. When a buyer refused to buy a horse because it was “wild,” her dad Edward “Bo” Owens looked at Chapman, who was five years old at the time, and pitched to the buyer “Well, he’s gentle. She can ride him.” Though Chapman knew the horse was untamed and she was afraid, she remembers the joy on her father’s face when she rode the horse. “The only reason I could do it was because he believed I could,” Chapman said. This precious memory taught Chapman to do the things she fears.
As a child, Dr. Chapman lost her father in a car accident. After his passing, his children, the seven Owens siblings became a unit of little warriors and a source of strength for each other. The Owens children had to pitch in to manage the farm and cattle, which was a steep learning process. When cows escaped, they would help herd them back in. They overcame many near-death incidents. One event continues to inspire Dr. Chapman and embodies the togetherness and resilience she appreciated growing up. A cow was stuck in a deep, long trench after a heavy storm. Slippery and muddy, the only way to get the cow out was to get in the ditch and see what the cow faced. With half the siblings in front and half behind the cow, they were able to find an easier way out together. Now, saying “the cow’s in the ditch” is all it takes for Chapman’s siblings to ask for unconditional help from each other.
Chapman said that her siblings were like fingers on a hand, each with their own responsibility but connected at the palm through family. At nine years old, Chapman cared for her younger siblings and set aside clean sets of clothes for her older brothers who were working in the field and going to school. When she was old enough to work, she learned how to save, portion money, and buy things that were necessary for their family’s survival.
Despite financial hardship, Chapman’s mom prioritized education because it was something no one could take away. Leading by example, her mom earned her GED and enrolled in college to help her kids with homework. Her mom taught Chapman and her siblings that “We are who we are. The death of our daddy did not change us. Whatever he wanted from us, we need to attain it,” said Chapman.
Days before her father’s death, Mr. Owens organized a birthday celebration for all his children and “told us that he wanted a lawyer, a doctor, and a preacher… Originally, my three brothers thought that was for them. I said, ‘No, I’m going to be the doctor.’”
The journey of a dentist
En route to being a doctor, Dr. Jasmin Chapman diligently attended to her studies. Chapman earned the highest ACT score in her high school class, received a full scholarship to study Biology at Jackson State University, and graduated from the University of Iowa College of Dentistry.
Chapman returned to Mississippi, eager to give back to the community health center where she received care growing up. During a time when Black Americans received inferior health care services in separate medical facilities from white Americans, Jackson-Hinds Comprehensive Health Center (JHCHC) was revolutionary. Instead of going to the “Colored Only” side and waiting for a white doctor, the Owens family went through the front doors and saw doctors who looked like them at Jackson-Hinds. Her mother felt dignified and respected at JHCHC because she could pay what she could. This was the space Chapman wanted to practice dentistry in.
After speaking with a family friend, fellow Terry native, and community health center pioneer Dr. Robert Smith, Chapman started work as a dentist at JHCHC in 1979. Originally planning to open a private practice after a year, she saw the impact she made and decided to stay. Five years later, she was promoted to dental director.
The fight for JHCHC’s survival
JHCHC’s survival was not guaranteed. JHCHC co-founders, Drs. Aaron Shirley and James Anderson, and Chapman overcame many obstacles to keep JHCHC in business. In 1995, JHCHC was nearly bankrupt and had difficulty making payroll. It was believed a partnership with the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) would save JHCHC. Attorney Bob Owens, who served as Jackson-Hinds’ attorney at the time, along with the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), carefully examined the contract and discovered that it was actually a takeover agreement. If signed, the agreement would result in the dissolution of JHCHC, giving UMMC the power to hire and fire all of its leadership. Federally qualified health centers must have at least 51% community representation on their board, and formally becoming a part of an academic medical center would lose the community leadership that is characteristic of – and required of – community health centers.
Before Dr. Shirley stepped down from his position, HRSA sent a representative to act as CEO in Dr. Shirley’s place, and Chapman, a dentist by training, became the medical director in 1997. Committed to representing their community, Anderson was determined to maintain Jackson-Hinds’ autonomy and financially save the clinic without UMMC. Anderson, Chapman, and the HRSA representative reduced staff salaries and closed clinics that weren’t making money. JHCHC was paying debts off, making payroll, and becoming financially stable.
However, JHCHC fell into severe financial trouble once again, and its position as a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) was being threatened. After Dr. Anderson had experienced an unexpected illness, the board wanted local leadership and elected Chapman to serve as interim CEO. “At that time, we were able to get Jackson-Hinds out of the status of bankruptcy, with me being the interim,” said Chapman. “It wasn’t Chapman’s medical expertise, but her business and financial expertise that was most needed to pull Jackson-Hinds pulled from financial ruin.
All of Jackson-Hinds’ staff did everything they could to improve the clinical and operational aspects of the health center and its sites. For example, HRSA required FQHC facilities to be compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. To renovate the facilities, Chapman worked with Republican Senator Thad Cochran to secure $1.6 million in grant funding for a new building. Another important political ally, Dr. Audrey F. Manley, the first Black female Surgeon General of the United States, expressed her support for Chapman and JHCHC’s work and longevity in a personal phone call. Chapman received additional funding from hospital associations and applied for a loan guarantee from the Federal Bureau for the remaining money needed for the renovation. When the Bureau did not approve the loan despite verbal agreement, Chapman was able to secure a loan at a local bank. With Chapman’s leadership, grit, and national and local relationships, JHCHC built a new facility, passed the renewal evaluation, and sustained federal funding for the next three years. Chapman said, “[the consultants’] report of our site visit was outstanding. They said things like ‘We think that Jackson Hinds now is the best it has ever been.’”
For the election of a permanent CEO, JHCHC staff and community wrote Chapman’s name in. In 1999, she became the first female CEO of JHCHC.
Chapman’s leadership at Jackson-Hinds
Repeatedly, Chapman demonstrated her leadership capabilities. Yet, she still faced discrimination, as well as sexism, being a Black woman. Chapman said, “It was to the point that there were years and years of being CEO, and the community people still thought Dr. Shirley was CEO.” After a tough love phone call with her brother, she was reminded of the tenacity her mother instilled in her. She adopted the lesson that “as a woman, you could not be as good, you really needed to be better.”
Months before Chapman wanted to open school-based clinics or new facilities, she would prove that JHCHC was ready in as many ways as the board needed. “It was my job to give [the board] confidence,” said Chapman. She wasn’t upset about being discounted and second-guessed. Instead, Chapman strategically leveraged the misogyny she faced by asking her male colleagues to present her projects to the board. Focused on the outcomes, she had faith that her preparedness and leadership would be recognized. Chapman said, “I could have my ego or whatever, or I could get it passed. Eventually, they’ll know.”
At JHCHC, Chapman increased access to health care and addressed a fundamental social driver of health: housing. JHCHC expanded to schools, developed a housing and urban development complex, and operated multiple clinics. During her leadership, Chapman grew what was once a “$5 million operation to an over $30 million operation… from three sites to 35 sites,” Chapman remarks, “The trial the board put me through was good for me and good for JHCHC.” As JHCHC grew, so did the board’s respect and confidence in Chapman as CEO.
Another endeavor was collaborating with Dr. Daniel Jones, Chancellor of the University of Mississippi, to build a true partnership with UMMC. Both Chapman and Jones were there for the first attempt at a collaboration between JHCHC and UMMC. Because of their predecessors, they wanted to make this work. With mutual trust and respect and the help of Attorney Jackie Leifer, NACHC Attorney, and Michael Taylor, NACHC Consultant, they built the $5 million partnership. This partnership offers a unique and unparalleled community-based medical training experience for undergraduate and graduate students “in a way that did not jeopardize [JHCHC’s] independence and autonomy, and maintained [JHCHC’s] status as an FQHC,” said Chapman, “To this day, we are still very good partners with them. Initially with Dr. Jones and Dr. James E. Keeton, and now with Dr. LouAnn Woodward.”
Chapman credits the success at Jackson-Hinds to the staff. “It was the people who worked for us and the people who understood the value of a FQHC and the need for health care for all, the poor and the uninsured. Sometimes they came from unexpected sources, like UMMC, Senator Cochran, and Rep. Bennie Thompson, who used to work here,” said Chapman.
JHCHC’s steadfast response to the COVID-19 pandemic showcases the dedication and drive of Jackson-Hinds staff members. Chapman said, “One of my proudest moments was when I saw the majority of staff at Jackson-Hinds understand who they were in the community and stood there for them.” JHCHC continued to provide care to their patients via telehealth when most health centers were shuttering their doors and was one of the first FQHCs in Mississippi that provided COVID-19 information, testing, and vaccinations. JHCHC’s vaccination drives would distribute 400 doses within two days.
Now, Chapman is working with the Pearl Street AME Church and Gulf Coast Housing Partnership Health + Housing to develop a 76-unit affordable housing complex for the elderly and disabled. In addition to housing, JHCHC will run a health clinic servicing the residents of The Pearl and the surrounding community.
Chapman’s journey from dentist to dental director to medical director to interim CEO to CEO is a testament to her dedication to JHCHC and her commitment to her parents’ lesson of finishing what you started. Above all else, it shows the power of believing in what you can do. She rose to the challenge and turned a courageous idea into a long-lasting legacy. In 2024, Chapman celebrates 44 years at Jackson-Hinds Comprehensive Health Center, the largest community health center in Mississippi with 35 locations throughout Hinds, Copiah, and Warren Counties.
Awards and Recognition
She has served on the Mississippi Division of Medicaid’s Medical Care Advisory Committee, Methodist Rehabilitation Center Board of Trustees, the Governor’s Mississippi Health care Institute, Mississippi Primary Health Care Association (MPHCA), and more.
Chapman has been awarded countless awards for her leadership of Jackson-Hinds Comprehensive Health Center and contributions towards equitable health care delivery. She was the 2023 Community Health Center Association Presidential Award recipient, MPHCA CEO of the Year, Jackson Advocate’s 2022 Woman of the Year, Our Mississippi magazine’s Most Influential African Americans of 2019, and Alpha Kappa Alpha’s Legacy of Supreme Service Health Care Advocate of the Year in 2017.