RSVP of Central Oklahoma recently marked the end of its Provide-A-Ride senior transportation program with a celebration of volunteers who dedicated their time to helping older adults get to their doctor’s appointments.
The celebration of volunteers took place at the Oklahoma History Center. The organization’s Provide-A-Ride senior transportation program started in 1994, and during that time volunteer drivers gave more than 130,000 rides to low-income older adults.
RSVP of Central Oklahoma continues to partner with more than 50 nonprofits in the central Oklahoma community. It celebrates its 50th anniversary this year of matching people 55+ with meaningful volunteer opportunities in the community.

by Dr. C.V Ramana

What is osteoporosis?
It is the “weakening” or “softening” of bones.
Bone consists of a framework or matrix of collagen and other soft tissue elements. It is then “hardened” by deposition of calcium mineral into the matrix. We think of bone as being a “static” component of the body, but this is not true. Bone is constantly formed and broken down throughout our life as the result of a complex interplay of dueling hormones, health, diet, and activity. In childhood and young adulthood, bone growth is faster than breakdown. People generally reach peak bone mass in their late 20’s. After that, bone breakdown tends to be faster than new bone formation. When calcium is taken out of mature (or fully formed) bone and not replaced, the frame left behind is soft or weak, and easily susceptible to fracture.
Why is calcium needed in the body?
Calcium is an important mineral in the body – it is vital to the formation and strengthening of our bones, but also plays an important role in the function of muscles and nerves as well as innumerable biochemical reactions in the body. Calcium is transported throughout the body dissolved in blood, and so, available to all of our organs and tissues in carrying out their functions. The amount of calcium in the blood is tightly regulated by hormones released into the bloodstream from the thyroid and parathyroid glands (located below the Adam’s Apple), pituitary gland (in the brain), as well as the adrenal glands and kidneys.
Our bones serve as a massive reservoir of calcium that can be tapped when calcium levels in the blood are low due to inadequate dietary intake, inadequate levels of vitamin D in our bodies, or the wrong form of vitamin D due to inadequate exposure to sunlight, or as a result of some medications.
How to know if you have osteoporosis?
Unfortunately, this is a “silent disease” and does not become symptomatic until a bone is fractured, or the back becomes kyphotic (stooped) due to slow collapse of multiple vertebra in the upper spine.
How to find out if you have osteoporosis?
Sometimes the diagnosis may be suggested based on the appearance of bones on x-rays or CT scans that you may have for other reasons. The most reliable way, though, is through a test called DEXA which measures Bone Mineral Density (BMD) in various bones in the body.
Blood tests to determine the level of Calcium, Vitamin D, calcitonin and parathyroid hormone can also be helpful, especially in planning treatment.
Risk factors for developing osteoporosis
Factors that can be modified
* Lifestyle – inactive lifestyle or extended bedrest
* Smoking
* Alcohol consumption
* Inadequate dietary intake
* Sex hormones – abnormal absence of menstrual periods or menopause with low estrogen in women, and low testosterone in men
* Medications – long term use of steroids, some seizure medications
Factors that cannot be modified
* Sex – women are more prone to develop this than men
* Age – bone mass decreases in everyone after the late 20’s
* Body size – small boned women are more likely to develop osteoporosis]
Ethnicity – Caucasian and Asian women have a higher likelihood, though African American and Hispanic women are also at high risk.
* Heredity – people whose parents have osteoporosis have an increased likelihood
How can it be treated?
* Smoking cessation
* Decrease alcohol consumption
* Lifestyle modification – weight bearing exercises such as walking, jogging, hiking, climbing stairs, playing tennis and dancing are all good. Resistance exercises such as weight lifting or weight training machines are good
* Increase dietary intake of calcium and vitamin D
* Recommended levels – calcium – more than 1000 mg/day after the age of 30, and 1200 mg/day for women after the age of 50. Vitamin D – more than 600 IU/day for adults up to age 70, and 800 IU/day for men and women beyond the age of 70.
Medications
* Supplemental calcium and Vitamin D
* Prescription medications that work in a variety of ways to interfere with the rates of bone formation and breakdown balance
* Bisphosphonates (which bind to calcium for deposition in bone)
* Estrogen and estrogen analogues
* Estrogen receptor modifiers
* Calcitonin – hormone
* Parathyroid hormone blocker
Who can treat Osteoporosis?
A primary healthcare provider should be contacted for diagnosis and development of a treatment plan. In some cases, they may refer to a specialist for the treatment. Specialists can include endocrinologists, rheumatologists, and women’s health specialists such as an Ob/Gyn.
Dr. C.V Ramana is a vascular and interventional radiologist with more than 20 years of practice experience. He has expertise in all areas of vascular and interventional radiology. Dr. Ramana has a Ph. D from Yale University and MD from CWRU in Cleveland, Ohio where he subsequently completed his fellowship in Vascular and Interventional Radiology at the Cleveland Clinic. https://naadihealthcare.com/

1 NW 64th Street 73116 Oklahoma City, OK Phone: (405) 608-8884

VA delivered more than $2.2 billion in earned benefits to Veterans and survivors since President Biden signed PACT into law

Today, VA announced that Veterans and their survivors have filed more than one million claims for toxic exposure-related benefits under the PACT Act since President Biden signed it into law Aug. 10, 2022. VA has processed more than 551,000 of these claims, granting 77.9% of them and awarding more than $2.2 billion in earned benefits to Veterans and survivors. Supporting Veterans and their families is a core pillar in President Biden’s Unity Agenda for the nation, and today’s announcement helps deliver on his promise to comprehensively address military related toxic exposure.

Thanks to the largest outreach campaign in VA history, Veterans and survivors are applying for their earned benefits at record rates. In this fiscal year alone, Veterans and survivors have submitted 2.29 million total claims (PACT and non-PACT) — 40.4% more year-to-date than last fiscal year, which was the previous all-time record. Veterans have also submitted more than 2.1 million “intents to file” during this fiscal year — 53.1% more than all of last fiscal year and also an all-time record.

The PACT Act is the biggest expansion of Veteran health care and benefits in decades. VA encourages all eligible Veterans and survivors to file a claim — or submit their intent to file a claim — for PACT Act-related benefits now.

“Thanks to President Biden, the heroes who fought for our country are now getting health care and compensation for the conditions that followed them home from war,” said VA Secretary Denis McDonough. “We’re proud that more than one million Veterans and survivors have applied for their hard-earned benefits to date, but this is just the beginning — and we won’t rest until every Veteran and every survivor gets the VA health care and benefits they deserve.”

Partly due to the PACT Act, VA is delivering more care and more benefits to more Veterans than ever before. Key results to date include:

• Delivering benefits to Veterans and their survivors: VA has processed 1.85 million total Veteran claims (PACT and non-PACT) thus far in this fiscal year —15.7% more to date than last fiscal year and already surpassing last year’s all-time record total of 1.7 million claims processed.
• Increasing Veteran access to health care: Since Aug. 10, 378,995 Veterans have enrolled in VA health care. This includes more than 158,691 enrollees from the PACT Act population (Vietnam, Gulf War, and Post-9/11 era Veterans).
• Screening Veterans for toxic exposures: More than 4.4 million enrolled Veterans have received 5-minute screenings for toxic exposures from VA under the PACT Act.

Right now, there is also a special enrollment period for Veterans to enroll directly in VA health care without first applying for VA benefits. Specifically, until 11:59 p.m., local time, Sept. 30, Veterans who deployed to a combat zone, never enrolled in VA health care, and left active duty between Sept. 11, 2001, and Oct. 1, 2013, are eligible to enroll in VA health care without first applying for disability compensation benefits. VA encourages all of these Veterans to visit VA.gov/PACT or call 1-800-MYVA411 to learn more and sign up for VA health care before the deadline.

VA is delivering health care and benefits at record rates partly due to a dramatic increase in hiring at VA. For the first time in VA’s history, the Veterans Health Administration has over 400,000 employees and the Veterans Benefits Administration has over 31,000 employees — and both organizations are growing at the fastest rates in 20 years. Moving forward, VA will continue to modernize and expand capacity to deliver health care and benefits to Veterans as quickly and effectively as possible.

For more information on VA’s implementation of the PACT Act, visit the PACT Act Dashboard. VA is publishing this dashboard every other Friday to document the implementation of this legislation and showcase its impact on Veterans and survivors. The next dashboard, which will reflect the data in this release, will publish on Sept. 15.

Veterans and survivors may apply or learn more about the PACT Act by visiting VA.gov/PACT or calling 1-800-MYVA411.

story and photo by Bobby Anderson, RN, Staff Writer

older weather means more layers of clothing, but that doesn’t mean you’re off the hook when it comes to protecting your skin from the sun’s damaging rays.
Dr. Elise Brantley is a board-certified dermatologist who has been practicing since 2009.
Her practice at Scissortail Dermatology focuses on protecting your skin year-round.
“Even though it’s chilly, it doesn’t really change the amount of UV light coming through,” Brantley said. “Even if it’s cloudy you’re still getting UV light. People may not get as intense of a burn, but they’re still accumulating sun damage. Even when you’re not thinking about it you still need to be wearing your hats and sunscreen.”
It’s all fun in the sun when you’re young.
But as you start to age all that exposure to the sun can begin to take its toll, resulting in blemishes and forms of skin cancer.
Brantley’s practice focus is the evaluation and treatment of growths of the skin with an emphasis on detecting and treating skin cancer.
She is a native Oklahoman from Broken Arrow.
After graduating high school from the Oklahoma School of Science and Mathematics she attended the University of Tulsa for undergraduate studies.
She received her medical degree from the University of Oklahoma and completed her residency training at the University of Cincinnati where she served as chief resident.
She has been serving the Oklahoma City metro area for nearly 10 years.
“Usually if there is any question I say to come in and get a baseline and we can determine what your risk is based on different factors,” Brantley said.
Risk factors include your skin cancer history, your family history, and your history of sun exposure as well as any burns that have occurred in the past.
“Little things like that can increase your risk so that will help decide when you need to come in for regular checks,” Brantley said. “I have some people that have to come every three months, but some qualify for annual checks.”
While most are aware of the harmful effects burns can have during the summer, winter presents its own set of challenges for your skin.
Brantley notes that skiing can be a time for increased sun absorption as you are exposed to the sun’s rays twice, once from above and then again from UV light reflected back up from the snow.
“The other thing we like to remind people when they are skiing is to wear lip balm with SPF in it because (UV light) can cause sun damage and also herpes outbreaks (common cold sores),” Brantley said.
When it comes to sun exposure, Brantley said most people often don’t realize their lips need protection, too.
She says almost every month she catches a squamous cell cancer that has formed on a lip.
“Unfortunately, those are more aggressive, too. Those need to be diagnosed quickly with any lip changes. That’s semi-emergent,” she said.
Chronic chapping on one area of the lip or a noticeable bump or knot can be a sign that something abnormal is going on.
Even if you limit your sun exposure and take all the necessary precautions, sometimes the medications you take can increase your risk of skin cancer.
Immunosuppresives that treat organ transplant patients as well as Lupus, psoriasis, and multiple sclerosis drugs can be problematic.
“Your immune system is used to protect our bodies and repair DNA damage,” Brantley said. “When that is suppressed skin cancers are able to grow.”
Dopamine drugs used to prevent and treat Parkinson’s disease can also promote the growth of melanomas.
Another risk factor Brantley sees frequently in her older patients is those who underwent radiation therapy for the treatment of cystic acne.
She says that treatment history is popping up more and more in her skin cancer patients.
According to the non-profit Skin Foundation, skin cancer is the most common cancer in the world. In the U.S., more than 9,500 people are diagnosed with skin cancer every day and:
* 1 in 5 Americans will develop skin cancer by the age of 70.
* More than 2 people die of skin cancer in the U.S. every hour.
* Having 5 or more sunburns doubles your risk for melanoma.
* When detected early, the 5-year survival rate for melanoma is 99 percent.
The annual cost of treating skin cancers in the U.S. is estimated at $8.1 billion: about $4.8 billion for nonmelanoma skin cancers and $3.3 billion for melanoma, according to the Foundation.
Thanks to increased education and screening by dermatologists like Brantley, the diagnosis and treatment of nonmelanoma skin cancers in the U.S. increased by 77 percent between 1994 and 2014.
For more information visit: https://scissortaildermatology.com/

Insurance Commissioner Glen Mulready announced today the 2021 preliminary rate filings for health insurance plans under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Insurers that currently offer coverage through the Oklahoma Marketplace filed plans requesting average statewide increases of 2.7 percent.
The same three insurers that offered individual health plans on the 2020 Exchange will return for 2021 — Blue Cross Shield of Oklahoma (BCBSOK) , Bright Health and Medica Insurance Company. In addition, Oscar Health, UnitedHealthCare (UHC) and CommunityCare Oklahoma (CCOK) will join the marketplace in Oklahoma for 2021 allowing consumers to have more choices. BCBSOK and Medica offer statewide plans while Bright Health, CCOK, Oscar and UHC serve limited areas of the state.
Moderate rate increase requests and new insurers looking to offer plans in Oklahoma revealed that the Oklahoma insurance market is stable and able to offer multiple health insurance options for all Oklahomans.
“Creating more choices for consumers has been a top priority of mine and it is encouraging to see more insurers enter the Oklahoma market and another year of modest rate change requests. It demonstrates our efforts to stabilize and improve affordability in this market have been working,” Insurance Commissioner Glen Mulready said. “Oklahoma continues to have a healthy, competitive individual health insurance market, and insurers are committed to providing more options for Oklahomans who seek health insurance on the Marketplace.”
Rate filings for 2021 health insurance plans were approved by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and are posted at https://ratereview.healthcare.gov/. Final approved rates will be made public in September.
If you have questions about other insurance issues, contact the Oklahoma Insurance Department at 1-800-522-0071 or visit our website at www.oid.ok.gov.

After a national search, INTEGRIS Health is excited to share the selection of Brent Hubbard as the health care system’s new chief operating officer.
Hubbard comes to INTEGRIS Health most recently from Mercy Health System, Mercy Hospital Springfield Communities, where he serves as president and COO. Since 2016, his responsibilities were to lead the strategic direction of seven hospitals with administrative and operational oversight of 7,500 coworkers.
Prior to Hubbard’s current position, he served as the chief operating officer at Mercy Health System, Mercy Hospital Fort Smith Communities, and the chief operating officer at HCA, Medical Center of McKinney. Other roles he has held include associate administrator at HCA – Centennial Medical Center and executive director and director of marketing at Woodward Regional Hospital.
Hubbard received his Bachelor of Science in business administration from Oklahoma State University and his Master of Business Administration from Southwestern Oklahoma State University. He is an accomplished health care executive and brings to INTEGRIS Health a strong focus on performance metrics. He is a believer in continuous process improvement. Hubbard has extensive experience in improving physician and coworker engagement, quality measures and patient outcomes, and achieving operational excellence to include service line growth and expanding patient access to health care.
He and his wife, Hilary, were both raised in Oklahoma, Mooreland and Woodward respectively. They are excited to be moving, along with their three children, back to the great state of Oklahoma and joining the INTEGRIS Health team. Hubbard’s first day at INTEGRIS Health will be May 2.

Stride Bank has managed to secure over 400 SBA PPP loans and saved an estimated 6,407 jobs

The staff at Stride Bank has been working around the clock for weeks now to ensure local businesses are approved for the Small Business Administration’s Payroll Protection
Program loans. The funds may have run out for the initial phase of the program, but Stride isn’t slowing down their efforts any time soon.
As the federal government works to provide a second wave of SBA PPP funding, Stride Bank is putting in the extra effort to ensure anyone left out of phase one funding will find relief with phase two.
So far, throughout this process, Stride Bank has managed to secure over 400 SBA PPP loans, provided over $59 million in potentially forgivable funds and saved an estimated 6,407 jobs.
When asked how Stride has managed to secure so much funding and ensure the approval of so many loans, Kevin Guarnera, the leader of Stride Bank’s dedicated SBA team, responded, “We’ve been a part of our community for over 100 years. We’re not about to quit on anyone now. Local small businesses are in trouble, and they’ve been thrown a lifeline. It’s our job to make sure as many small businesses as possible secure that lifeline and find safety.”
Guarnera and his team have been sought out by others in the industry as the experts on getting these loans approved quickly and efficiently. By understanding the guidelines inside and out and working overtime to get applications processed, the team at Stride has helped numerous local businesses find that lifeline.
“When you’re a part of a community, you protect it and everyone in it. We won’t stop until this is over,” added Guarnera.
Founded in 1913, Stride Bank is an Oklahoma-based financial institution that holds over $800 million in assets.
Offering a full range of financial services such as consumer and commercial banking, mortgage, wealth management, and treasury management, we have also developed and currently manage highly specialized payment solutions for several national fintech companies. While we are unwavering in our pursuit to continue innovating and offering new financial solutions, we will always remain loyal to our community banking roots in Oklahoma. We have branches throughout Oklahoma in Enid, Tulsa, Oklahoma City, Bartlesville, Blackwell, Woodward, and Mooreland. Member FDIC. Equal Housing Lender. Learn more at www.stridebank.com.
Debbie Blacklock is the Senior Vice President and Manager of the Stride Bank Healthcare Division. Founded in 1913, Stride Bank is a full-service, Oklahoma-owned-and-operated financial institution with offices in Oklahoma City, Tulsa, Bartlesville, Enid, Woodward, Mooreland, and Blackwell. As an industry leader throughout the U.S. in real-time, next-generation payments, Stride Bank provides mobile banking and a full spectrum of Treasury Management Services. The Stride Bank Healthcare Division provides loans and other financial solutions for senior housing, long-term care, specialty hospitals, surgery centers, physicians, dentists, and other ambulatory healthcare providers. Debbie has 21 years of commercial banking experience in Oklahoma with over nine years in the healthcare space. Stride Bank, Member FDIC, Equal Housing Lender.

Publisher’s Note: Upon finding out our local financial institution was not able to secure SBA loans, we were forced to look elsewhere. Because we “were not a customer of theirs,” three other banks refused to even look at our application for the PPP loan. Fortunately, we made contact with Stride Bank, who worked diligently to secure our PPP even though we were not currently a customer. This publication does not generally recommend or endorse one business over another, but Stride Bank won our respect. A special thanks to Debbie Blacklock, Senior Vice President, Manager of Healthcare Banking at Stride Bank, N.A. for her hard work. OKNT recommends Stride Bank to our Healthcare Friends. VISIT US AT: https://stridebank.com/