Health Care

By Mark McElreah, MPA, Executive Director, Tulsa County Medical Society

Taking a look at 2022 in review shines a light on several key areas that helped shape and impact health care in Tulsa, from new variants and a resurgence of COVID-19 to Medicaid expansion and the tragedy that rocked our city and the nation.

2022 started with an Omicron surge, a record number of COVID hospitalizations and thousands of canceled flights. Headlines talked about vaccine mandates, staff shortages and overwhelmed emergency departments. So it was a big deal when, a few weeks later, free at-home COVID tests and N95 masks were made available to everyone. Physicians and our health care systems were exhausted and stretched thin again.

COVID-19 IN 2022

Positive developments were made in the fight against COVID-19 in 2022, including unprecedented advances in vaccine technology that allows for rapid updates to protect against new strains, a more effective treatment and prevention toolbox of vaccines and boosters, oral antivirals and home test kits, as well as growing population immunity to the virus. COVID became less of a disruption in our lives, making it possible to resume pre-pandemic activities like travel, attending large events and going to school in person and unmasked. In January and February, the U.S. was in the midst of the initial Omicron wave. At its peak, the wave involved the highest weekly number of cases and nearly the highest weekly number of deaths of the entire pandemic. According to the Tulsa Health Department, as of Jan. 23, 2023, in Tulsa County, the total number of COVID-19 cases was 209,000 with 2,354 deaths reported. The largest peak of new cases occurred in January 2022 with 15,278.

Medicare Cuts For Physicians

The federal government’s 2023 spending plan could hurt seniors’ access to medical care when physician reimbursement for Medicare drops in 2023. According to reports, Medicare payments will be cut to 2%, less than the 4.5% cuts expected in the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule payments in 2023 even though groups have urged Congress to avoid cuts altogether, citing the ongoing financial challenges providers are facing because of the pandemic.

The proposal seeks to stave off about half of the expected reductions to Medicare reimbursement for physician services over the next two years. Physicians will face a 2% cut in the new year and a 3.5% cut in 2024. At the end of the year, House members penned a bipartisan letter to President Joe Biden and House and Senate leadership, urging swift action to head off looming Medicare cuts.

Saint Francis Strong

In June, Tulsa and its health care community were rocked to their core. A gunman opened fire in the Natalie Building, part of the Saint Francis Hospital, killing Dr. Preston Phillips, Dr. Stephanie Husen, medical assistant Amanda Glenn and the husband of a patient, William Love. This tragedy brought to light what many in the health care community have been experiencing. According to Bureau of Labor Statistics data, health care and social service workers are five times as likely to be injured from violence in their workplace than other workers, and the number of such injuries has risen dramatically over the past decade — from 6.4 incidents per 10,000 workers annually in 2011, to 10.3 per 10,000 in 2020. As a response to this tragedy, the Tulsa County Medical Society and Oklahoma State Medical Association opened the Physician Wellness Program, a confidential and free counseling service for physicians, to all Saint Francis employees.

Celebratory News

Project Tulsa Charitable Medical Services celebrated its 10-year anniversary in 2022. Project TCMS is a community partnership to improve access to specialty health care for lowincome, uninsured Tulsa County residents. It combines care provided in primary care safety net clinics in Tulsa County with donated specialty care in a coordinated referral program led by the Tulsa County Medical Society Foundation. It is designed to enhance the work of existing safety net clinics and other community agencies. Over 185 Tulsa physicians volunteer and participate in the program. Since its inception, Project TCMS has provided 1,507 patients with specialty care representing 5,573 services resulting in over $9.1 million in donated care.

LOCAL HEALTH GROUPS ASCENSION ST. JOHN

Ascension St. John was founded in 1926 with the opening of St. John Medical Center near downtown Tulsa. Owned by the nation’s most extensive Catholic and nonprofit health system, Ascension St. John is committed to delivering compassionate, personalized care to all, especially those living in poverty and who are most vulnerable. Ascension St. John operates hospitals in Tulsa, Owasso, Broken Arrow, Sapulpa, Bartlesville and Nowata, along with multiple urgent care locations and physician offices throughout northeastern Oklahoma and southeastern Kansas.

COMMUNITY HEALTH CONNECTION/ LA CONEXIÓN MÉDICA

Community Health Connection is a Federally Qualified Health Center committed to meeting the lifelong health care needs of the northeast Oklahoma community, particularly catering to the Hispanic population. The medical clinic is designed to provide the highest quality, affordable and accessible primary health care services in a culturally effective, language-appropriate and compassionate manner.

Council Oak Comprehensive Healthcare

This facility was purchased by the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Department of Health in September 2021. It provides several specialty clinics, including neurology, pulmonology and diabetes care to Native Americans and community members. A minor emergency clinic, primary care clinic and monocolonal antibody infusion center also has been in operation. In 2022, it was announced that general surgery services would now be provided through a collaboration with the OU-TU School of Community Medicine.

Hillcrest Healthcare System

Hillcrest Medical Center is the city’s oldest medical facility, opening more than a century ago in 1918. Today, Hillcrest HealthCare System is recognized as a leader in health care, committed to “changing lives for the better, together.” HHS is comprised of Hillcrest Medical Center, Hillcrest Hospital South and Tulsa Spine and Specialty Hospital in Tulsa, as well as five regional hospitals in Claremore, Cushing, Henryetta, Pryor and Owasso. HHC also provides primary and specialty care services through Oklahoma Heart Institute and Utica Park Clinic.

Morton Comprehensive Health Services

Morton Comprehensive Health Services is a Federally Qualified Health Center offering medical services to patients regardless of ability to pay. Morton serves patients residing in more than 221 zip codes and 16 counties. Its mission is to provide quality, affordable health services to all people — along with dignity and respect — without regard to finances, culture or lifestyle.

Oklahoma State University Center For Health Sciences

The OSU Center for Health Sciences houses the OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine in addition to other health care programs. OSU-COM trains physicians for Oklahoma while providing vital health care services in underserved areas of Tulsa and to patients across the state.

Osu Medical Center

OSU Medical Center is one of the nation’s largest osteopathic teaching hospitals with 11 residency programs and nine fellowship programs. The hospital trains more than 150 residents in primary care and subspecialties each year. With full accreditation from the American Osteopathic Association, OSU Medical Center works to deliver high-quality care with compassion for patients and their families.

Oklahoma Surgical Hospital

Founded in 2001 by a group of physicians, Oklahoma Surgical Hospital provides a wide variety of surgical procedures including orthopedics, neurosurgery, joint replacement, general surgery, colorectal, breast, gynecology, urology, ear nose and throat, cardiology and plastic surgery. OSH maintains its focus on providing premier medical expertise and technological resources to the provision of superior personalized health care.

OU-TU SCHOOL OF COMMUNITY MEDICINE

The OU-TU School of Community Medicine is an educational track within the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine. Community medicine is focused on population-based health outcomes, with curriculum on the promotion of public health by education, early diagnosis and disease prevention. The OU-TU School of Community Medicine offers all four years of the Doctor of Medicine program and a 30-month physician assistant program on the OU-Tulsa Schusterman Campus.

Saint Francis Health System

Founded in 1960, Saint Francis Health System is a not-for-profit Catholic organization committed to excellence, dignity, justice, integrity and stewardship. As Tulsa’s largest private employer with more than 10,000 employees, Saint Francis remains the only locally owned and operated health care system in the area. The System includes Saint Francis Hospital, the Children’s Hospital at Saint Francis, Warren Clinic, the Heart Hospital at Saint Francis, Saint Francis Hospital South, Laureate Psychiatric Clinic and Hospital, along with community hospitals in Muskogee, Vinita and Glenpool and multiple outpatient specialty centers.