Reception to Honor Dr. Slocum’s Upcoming Retirement
TUPELO, Mississippi—The physicians and staff of OB-GYN Associates invite the community to a retirement reception honoring Dr. Wayne Slocum from 4-6 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 8, at the clinic, 1793 Cliff Gookin Blvd. The beloved OB-GYN is retiring later this month after 35 years of practice in Tupelo.
A native of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Dr. Slocum earned a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry from Louisiana State University in 1979. He completed his medical degree from LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine in 1983, the same year he married his wife, Yvette. In 1987, he finished residency training in obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson.
That July, Dr. Slocum and Yvette moved to Tupelo, where he joined OB-GYN Associates. “I had previously done a three-month rotation at North Mississippi Medical Center with Dr. P.K. Thomas,” Dr. Slocum said. “I liked what I saw and decided to come back. By the time I joined the practice, Dr. Thomas had retired and Women’s Hospital had just opened. There were five OB-GYNs in our group and three in another, so there were eight of us altogether.”
A career in obstetrics and gynecology has been the perfect fit for Dr. Slocum, and his favorite part has been the “neat relationships” formed with patients over the years. “It has been both an honor and a privilege,” he says. “It’s really meaningful for folks to put so much trust in me. I experienced both the highs and lows with patients, and I like to think that I helped some folks along the way.”
Dr. Slocum also served in several leadership roles at NMMC over the years, including chairman of the medical staff, OB-GYN section and credentials committee. He was honored by NMMC with the Golden Tongue Blade Award in 2013.
Known for his keen sense of humor, Dr. Slocum proved he can take it as well as he dishes it out when he served as honorary chair for Good Samaritan Health Services’ Free Clinic annual roast in 2014. The event raised thousands of dollars to help provide medical care for the working uninsured in Lee County.
“I really feel blessed with a wonderful job and so many wonderful colleagues and patients,” he says. “I’ve had 100% job satisfaction. I really have enjoyed it.”
In retirement, he looks forward to traveling with Yvette to visit family and spoil grandchildren. Their travels will include New Orleans, where son Adam and his wife, Sidney, live with 3-year-old Parker and 1-year-old Sloane; Denver, where son Scott and his wife, Kaila, live with 1-year-old Kirby; and Oxford to visit daughter, Emily.
