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OSU Medicine Utilizes Technology to Expand Healthcare Access in Oklahoma

Media Contact

Friday, May 24, 2024

Melani Hamilton | Managing Director, Marketing & Communications | 918-561-8462 | [email protected]

In order to bridge the gap of health care access that is much needed in Oklahoma,
OSU Medicine is utilizing the latest technologies to bring the expertise of its physicians
directly to rural hospitals across the state.

OSU Medicine is currently providing virtual behavioral health emergency room consults,
as well as hospitalist services for McCurtain Memorial Hospital and Cleveland Area
Hospital respectively. Emergency room behavioral care will also soon be available
at Coal County General Hospital and Atoka County Medical Center, while virtual hospitalist
services will soon be available in Sallisaw at Northeastern Health System Sequoyah.
Tele-stroke services are now offered at hospitals in Anadarko, Fairfax and Stroud,
while virtual cardiology services are ongoing with Choctaw Nation in Poteau.

“Oklahoma State University has been pioneering telehealth services for more than 25
years,” said Dr. Johnny Stephens, president of OSU Center for Health Sciences. “OSU
continues to innovate as the leader in telehealth and virtual care, as technology
continues to broaden the possibilities of reaching across the state to provide specialty
care. Through these efforts, we are working to address both patient needs as well
as health care workforce shortage issues.”

In addition to virtual care services, OSU Medicine is providing board-certified emergency
medicine physicians to staff and manage the ER services at Cleveland Area Hospital
and McAlester Regional Medical Center.

“Our push for quality has driven increased patient volume and acuity. The partnership
with OSU, including having an emergency medicine physician onsite 24/7, has enhanced
our clinical skill, professionalism, and stability,” said Edred Benton, CEO of Cleveland
Area Hospital.

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During the first month of providing virtual care at McCurtain Memorial Hospital, OSU
Medicine provided 21 emergency behavioral health appointments, half of which were
addiction related. These services can be transformative as a solution to inpatient
bed shortages.

“McCurtain Memorial Hospital and Oklahoma State University have partnered to help
provide much needed tele-psychiatry services through the emergency room for our community.
Every three years we perform a community health needs assessment, and mental health
is always at the top of that list,” said Dr. David Bishop, ER physician and chief
of staff at McCurtain Memorial Hospital.

According to a new study by the Healthy Minds Policy Initiative, over 56% of Oklahomans
who needed mental health treatment didn’t get it in 2022, and Oklahoma’s supply of
behavioral health professionals is well below national levels.

“The therapist and counselors spend a lot of time talking with the patients. I think
this makes the patients feel heard and that someone truly wants to help them,” said
Pam Jackson, emergency room director at McCurtain Memorial Hospital.

Seventy-five counties in Oklahoma are considered Health Professional Shortage Areas.
While OSU is a leader in educating and returning physicians to practice in rural and
underserved areas, the need is still great. Virtual care and telehealth services are
vital to connecting Oklahomans to health services, Stephens said.

Launching in the fall will be a pilot project with 20 rural schools to provide urgent
and behavioral care services. A telehealth cart will be on site with a stethoscope
and otoscope and a high-definition camera. Clinicians will connect virtually to make
a diagnosis and treat or assess patients for further care. Behavioral services will
be provided via a familiar interface on an iPad.

Under the direction of Jared Droze and Dr. Bradley Anderson, OSU Medicine’s first
director and medical director for virtual care respectively, additional projects launching
soon include two mobile care units — one to provide primary care and the second to
provide cardiology services which will travel to serve rural areas.

In addition to these expanded virtual care services and unique partnerships, the OSU
Center for Health Sciences leverages its medical expertise via Project ECHO, a knowledge-sharing
approach where expert teams lead virtual sessions for rural providers to help them
deliver best-in-practice care to communities across the state.

OSU Center for Health Sciences has also partnered with the Oklahoma Department of
Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services to offer the Oklahoma Child and Adolescent
Psychiatry and Mental Health Access Program, or OKCAPMAP.

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