TSET Board tours Clinical Skills and Simulation Center at OSU Center for Health Sciences

Pictured above from left to right: Don Millican, TSET Board Chair, David Knight, Simulation Specialist and Jim Gebhart, TSET Board Member touring the simulation center in Tulsa

Recently, the TSET Board of Directors toured the new A.R. and Marylouise Tandy Medical Academic Building on the campus of OSU Center for Health Sciences in Tulsa. Board members learned about the state-of-the-art simulation center which features 16 manikins that can present virtually any type of clinic experience from emergency situations to surgery, birthing and pediatrics.

The lab has an extensive collection of progressive medical equipment, task trainers, manikins and virtual reality trainers that provide the closest experience possible to treating a live procedure, injury or condition. 

Medical residency partnership at Comanche County Memorial Hospital successful in creating rural physician training program

Pictured from left to right: Reps. John Michael Montgomery and Rande Worthen and TSET Executive Director John Woods.

Earlier this month, representatives from TSET, OSU Center for Health Sciences and Comanche County Memorial Hospital (CCMH) gathered to announce a significant milestone reached by the family medicine and emergency medicine residency training programs at CCMH.

Both the family medicine residency training program and the emergency medicine residency training program at CCMH are now self-sustaining programs.

In 2015, the TSET Board of Directors approved a $3.8 million grant to the OSU Center for Health Sciences to fund start-up costs to support up to 118 accredited residency slots located across the state. A portion of the funds provided by TSET were used by OSU-CHS to pair with Medicaid funds to support the development of residency programs in family medicine and emergency medicine at CCMH. These family medicine and emergency medicine residency training programs at CCMH have a combined 28 residency training slots with 12 slots in family medicine and 16 slots in emergency medicine. Residency programs like these have proven to be effective methods for recruiting and retaining physicians. Already, two physicians who graduated from the residency programs at CCMH, one in family medicine and one in emergency medicine, are practicing in Lawton.

TSET’s partnership with OSU-CHS is also helping to support the development of a physician training program at Norman Regional Hospital. There are currently 24 physician residents training in the emergency department at the Norman hospital.

Research has shown that most doctors will practice within 100 miles of where they completed their residency training program.

Learn more about TSET’s grant to the Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences and the OSU Medical Authority here.

In Case You Missed It:

The Oklahoman:
Oklahoma lawmakers should focus on reducing tobacco use

One well-known way to reduce smoking in Oklahoma is to raise cigarette taxes. Yet even if tobacco taxes are left unchanged, there are other, if less high-profile, ways to reduce tobacco consumption. Unfortunately, lawmakers have not only failed to raise cigarette taxes, but have also put little focus on advancing those alternative measures.

A majority of Oklahomans support low cost, high impact policies that reduce tobacco use in our state.

Click here to read more from NewsOK as TSET Executive Director John Woods discusses ways to reduce tobacco use. 

TSET Board of Directors awards Healthy School and Communities incentive grants

The TSET Board of Directors approved 21 incentive grant awards for communities, school districts and school sites at their quarterly meeting in January. In total, $219,000 in TSET funds were awarded to seven communities, 12 school districts and two school sites as part of the TSET Healthy Communities and Healthy Schools Incentive grant program to finish out the 2017 grant year. While the incentive grant program is currently suspended for FY2018, TSET continues to support the partnership between communities and schools to adopt policies and strategies to improve health.

Smokeless tobacco users encouraged to quit during Through With Chew week

Through With Chew Week is a week-long initiative is designed to reduce the use of smokeless tobacco. In support of the event, the Oklahoma Tobacco Helpline; a program of TSET, reminded Oklahomans of some common triggers and helpful alternatives to smokeless tobacco. While smokers sometimes switch to smokeless tobacco as a method of quitting, it’s still extremely addictive, and someone who dips two cans a week gets as much or more nicotine as a pack-a-day smoker. Additionally, smokeless tobacco can cause cancer of the mouth, throat, cheek and gums, and contributes to an increased risk of heart attack and stroke. The Oklahoma Tobacco Helpline provides FREE assistance to those thinking about quitting smokeless tobacco, including text and email support, phone and web coaching and a two-week supply of patches, gum or lozenges for registered participants. To learn more about Through With Chew Week, visit OKhelpline.com/through-with-chew.