Veteran healthcare professional opens doors on new Pell City medical practice
Story by Carol Pappas
Photos by Bob Crisp
The grand opening celebration of Helms Healthcare in Pell City was more like a hero’s welcome with an overflow crowd to greet him. After all, Dr. Rock Helms was returning to his hometown where he grew up and began his practice of medicine.
Now, he’s come full circle.
“We are so thankful to be back. We’re thankful for this community,” Helms said, just before he officially cut the ribbon on the second location of Helms Healthcare in May. “This is where I grew up, where I met my childhood sweetheart,” he said, referring to his wife, Jennifer, by his side.
“What a crowd,” observed Councilman Jay Jenkins, speaking on behalf of the city. He said he didn’t think that there was that large of a turnout for a trio of much anticipated grand openings of the shopping center, Longhorn or Olive Garden. “This is a great time for Pell City, welcoming Dr. Rock back to Pell City where he belongs,” he said.
“We are blessed to have him back in this town. Welcome back, Dr. Rock.”
“God has blessed our practice,” Helms told the crowd of well-wishers, noting that once the ribbon was cut, “We’ll get back to the basics of taking care of people.”
Getting back to basics is a common refrain for Helms, who founded Helms Healthcare a year and a half ago and opened the first location in Vincent. In little more than a year, he built it to well over 2,000 patients.
His familiar philosophy centers on building trusting relationships with his patients, listening to their needs and treating them with kindness and compassion. He stresses personal interactions every step of the way – beginning with the phone call, where patients talk to “a real person,” not press a number.
Helms will divide his time between the two clinics. In addition to Helms, providers for the Pell City location will be Nancy McClain, CRNP, Holly Nichols, CRNP, and Kim Buckalew, CRNP and DaKota Nichols, CRNP.
Pell City will have extended hours, and urgent care headed by Dakota Nichols, F-NPC. The Vincent clinic will be led by Jonathan Windham, CRNP.
The Pell City clinic, located at 1310 WA Goodgame Parkway, formerly known as Comer Avenue near the Pell City Industrial Park.
The former Precision building was thoroughly renovated by Goodgame Company and features more than a dozen examination rooms, a spacious waiting room, full lab, ultrasound, Xray and other advanced diagnostics. Cutting-edge technology is found throughout the clinic. And more is on the way.
A separate entrance and waiting area are designated for lab work and imaging studies for ease of access for patients.
Reasoning that quality healthcare should be available when needed, Helms welcomes walk-ins daily with no appointments needed. In addition, he has expanded the Pell City location to include urgent care, which is open seven days a week, to serve the community. Anyone is welcome regardless of whether they are an established patient or not.
Extended hours for the treatment of illness and injuries for pediatric and adult care are Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.; Saturday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; and Sunday, 1 p.m. to 6 p.m.
With patients’ best interest at the forefront of any planning, Helms has a record of building thriving practices. He founded a major medical practice in Pell City 25 years ago, growing it from a few providers and staff to over 200 employees and a sprawling campus of medical facilities, a pharmacy, urgent care and multiple specialties. There were locations in other communities, too.
He sold the practice, fulfilled contractual obligations and decided to go out on his own again. That led him to Vincent and a return to his roots in family medicine. Opening in March 2025, that clinic has grown to well over 2,000 patients.
“This is not just the opening of a new doctor’s office,” said St. Clair Economic Development Council Executive Director Don Smith. “Dr. Helms is creating the foundation of Pell City’s future as a regional leader in quality healthcare with the partnerships he has formed.”
Learn more online at HelmsHealthcare.com
