Elective Surgeries To Resume Across Oklahoma Friday

Governor Kevin Stitt has allowed hospitals across Oklahoma to resume elective surgeries under his reopening plan.

Integris Hospitals said it won’t actually start elective surgeries back up again Friday, but it will start the process of determining which operations will resume in the future.

In a statement, the hospital said it would follow the governor’s orders and prioritize operations based on how much it will impact the patients life.

“We are talking about heart carbs and G.I. procedures and hernias and things that left unchecked become a significant issue down the road.” said Dr. Richard Kirkpatrick, an Orthopedic Surgeon with Norman Regional Hospital. 

On Friday, Integris said it is reaching out to patients to gather information about delayed surgeries. The guidelines will be sent out Friday to help them determine how vital the procedure is.

Then, the hospital said the Operating Room Director will reach out to patients to schedule the most necessary surgeries.

Integris said thankfully, Oklahoma’s OCIVD-19 surge has been lower than expected, but the hospital said it is still possible for the virus to spread, so it’s screening every patient admitted to the hospital system.

“We know that there are asymptomatic carriers within the community and we want to go ahead and take that added measure and see if we can identify those patients before they enter our organization,” said Kerri Bayer with Integris. “It just helps support our frontline caregivers in keeping them safe during this pandemic event.”

On Monday April 27th, Integris said all of its facilities will move on to intermediate or semi-elective cases which have become more urgent.

So far, Integris has not set an exact date for the first surgeries to resume, that’s because this is a fluid situation that will require staff to keep a close eye on Personal Protection Equipment.