St. Anthony Hospital and Weatherford Regional Hospital are pleased to announce a new management agreement for Weatherford Regional Hospital. The agreement will offer Weatherford Regional Hospital a wide range of management support services that will aid the facility as they continue to provide the highest quality of health care to the community.
“This management agreement continues to strengthen our commitment to providing local access and exceptional care to the community that we serve,” said Debbie Howe, President, Weatherford Regional Hospital. “Weatherford Regional Hospital and St. Anthony Hospital working together will move us forward so that we can seek innovations in care, improve quality and provide greater access to health care and specialty services.”
The Board selected St. Anthony Hospital because of its commitment to patient satisfaction and exceptional health care. Weatherford Regional Hospital has been a tier one affiliate of the St. Anthony Affiliate Health Network since May 2013, and for five years prior to being a tier one, they were an affiliate in the network.
“Weatherford Regional Hospital and St. Anthony Hospital in Oklahoma City have been closely affiliated for more than ten years,” says Joe Hodges, Regional President, SSM Health Oklahoma. “We are pleased to join Weatherford Regional Hospital to further enhance specialty services for the residents in the area.”

I ran a red light without realizing it, and oh, what consequences I’ve suffered.
Everyone knows it’s dangerous to look at the sun. I didn’t know the dimness of my room in the nursing home where I live would turn me into a bat, ill equipped to handle bright sunshine. Light, long my friend, has become my enemy.
I fell in love with light as a child, relishing the long summer days where the sun shone late into the night. I lived in Maine, where the sun rises earlier than anywhere else in the United States, and I took advantage of the release from winter’s doldrums.
That changed when I moved into a nursing home, with only my window to mark the passing hours. I rarely go outside, but one day I decided to record a radio interview in the backyard. My aides set me up under a spacious tree at midsummer.
As soon as I rolled into the bright sunshine, I went blind. Unlike when I was younger, the lens of my eyes failed to adapt to the additional light. As long as I was outside, a white haze replaced the words and pictures on my computer screen.
I started having problems when I was indoors as well. The doctor said it was a consequence of growing older. The more I thought about it, I decided it also came from the eyestrain of constantly looking at a computer.
I earned my vision problems with every passing year. How many days have I passed with the white-faced monster as my constant companion? The dark confines of my room have only made it worse. If I heard reports about potential eye strain, I ignored them, a self-made victim of the “it won’t happen to me” syndrome.
I didn’t just ignore those reports, I also misread God’s traffic signs. Instead of paying attention when flashing lights warned me to “slow down,” I continued full speed ahead. When the color turned red, I stopped writing—but remained on the computer to read or chat with friends.
My computer consumption turned into an obsession with unexpected consequences.
A series of disasters kept slowing me down. Computer files disappeared. A false heart attack alarm sent me to the hospital for three days. My computer crashed, and then I struggled with the learning curve on the new machine.
In response, I worked harder. My computer remained on all hours of the day or night, because I saw no alternative between a full stop and work. I knew God didn’t want me to quit writing. Somehow my present weakness would showcase God’s strength.
After much mourning, meditation, and messing around, I realized the simplicity of the solution. Just pay attention to God’s stoplights.
Perhaps because I’d spent a dozen years mostly writing with a red light, I cherish the green lights. And lately, God has blessed me. I’ve committed to paid writing opportunities over the next year, as well as my monthly column.
God showed me that didn’t mean I should write without ceasing. I tend to say “yes” when asked to write something, even for free. Instead I should pause to consider the warning signs and proceed with caution. Sometimes I should refuse altogether.
I’ve also learned to limit time spent on my computer. I set a timer for an hour and focus on writing. When the alarm goes off, I close the computer for fifteen minutes. There’s plenty of writing, pre-writing, planning, and researching I can do without my computer. Sometimes I even write longhand as I did at first, while riding a bus to work.
Red lights are the hardest for me to put into practice. When my brain turns to mush, I no longer fight my need to rest. My goal is to stay off the computer all day Sunday. The Lord’s my work and my rest that day.
The funny thing is, when I pay attention to God’s traffic lights, I get more done than ever.
Green, Yellow, Red

Walk-a-thon for the needy,
God always says go
But He may signal
a change to slow
For protection, He
pulls full stop

Refresh and renew
at God’s rest stop
Pursue His leading
when He says go
Searching, seeking,
switch to slow

What wonders are missed
in the rush past slow
Labor in the fields
until the Boss says stop
Protected and fed,
then alarm sounds go
Go in love, slow to anger,
until the day we stop

Last November, INTEGRIS held a ground-breaking event to ceremonially kick-off construction of four different metro area INTEGRIS micro-hospital facilities. Work will occur at all four locations simultaneously, and our chain of micro-hospitals will be known as INTEGRIS Community Hospitals going forward because each location will include ER services as well as rooms for inpatient care. Upper floors within the four buildings will include physician and specialty clinics.
The photos below illustrate early phases of construction for INTEGRIS Community Hospital – Council Crossing located in northwest Oklahoma City. Construction crews tell us – if weather and wind cooperate – all concrete walls for the NW Expressway & Council Rd. location should be in place by the end of this week. Obviously, much work lies ahead, however we are on schedule to open the facility in February 2019.
In Moore, work crews will begin placing walls at our I-35 & South 34th Street location before the end of April. Structural steel is also visible from Interstate 40 at our Del City location near Sooner Road. Construction will begin in May at the OKC West location.
INTEGRIS Community Hospitals are being welcomed by leaders and families in each area. Excitement is growing as people begin to see the facilities take shape. We look forward to offering these easily accessible, high-quality health care service centers to our care continuum in the next 12 to 15 months.

OMRF scientist Rizwan Qaisar has been awarded an Irene Diamond Fund/AFAR Postdoctoral Transition Award in Aging.
The award, presented by the American Federation for Aging Research (AFAR) with support from the Irene Diamond Fund, will provide $120,000 in flexible transitional funding to Qaisar, who is researching age-related muscle loss called sarcopenia at OMRF. Postdocs are individuals conducting research after finishing their doctoral studies and are pursuing further training and a well-defined career path.
AFAR is a leading nonprofit dedicated to advancing healthy aging through biomedical research. The goal of this program, according to AFAR, is to provide portable and flexible transitional funding for senior postdoctoral fellows as they develop and negotiate for faculty positions and research programs. The award provides full-time research training and grant support. Founded in 1981, AFAR has awarded more than $175 million in grants to investigators and students across the U.S., Ireland, Israel, Italy and the United Kingdom.
“By giving these postdoctoral fellows this extra boost at a critical moment in their career path, AFAR is helping create a research pipeline that is essential to advancing better therapies for age-related diseases and discoveries that will help us all live healthier and longer,” said Jeremy Walston, M.D., Chair of the 2017 Selection Committee for the Irene Diamond Fund/AFAR Postdoctoral Transition Awards in Aging.
At OMRF, Qaisar works in the Aging and Metabolism Research Program with under the guidance of Program Chair Holly Van Remmen, Ph.D. looking specifically at the role of oxidative stress, or free radicals, in the long-term deterioration of muscle. Qaisar researches potential interventions for the disease pathways for sarcopenia, specifically the activation of the SERCA ATPase.
Qaisar earned his Ph.D. at the University of Uppsala, Sweden. His academic focus was looking at the mechanisms of muscle aging, and evaluating potential therapies to counter age-related weakness and muscle loss.
“I am extremely grateful and honored to receive this award,” said Qaisar. “This funding will provide me with a real opportunity to push my research forward and make a difference for our aging population.”

by Bryan Painter

CARNEGIE – If it’s possible for a person and a place to share a path through their lives, that person is Jeannie Hileman and that place is the Carnegie Gin.
The Carnegie Gin, managed by Hileman, has produced and persisted through literally the best of times and the worst. The Carnegie Gin was established in 1925. This most recent crop, 2017, ranked as the 11th best in state history in terms of production. That means the Carnegie Gin, although it has taken on different looks through the years, has been around for eight of the top 11 best cotton crops in Oklahoma dating to records of 1894, and also eight of the 11 worst cotton crops in that time span. Right now, Hileman is experiencing some of the best times in recent cotton history.
Not only was last year the 11th best in state history, this next crop of Oklahoma Upland Cotton will be planted on 16 percent more acres than in 2017, according to a United States Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service prospective planting forecast.
However Hileman, who started working at the gin in 1990, has seen several of the worst years: seven of the worst 11 to be specific. Consistently optimistic, she notes that during the drought that began in Oklahoma in about October 2010, “We really did not have the problems most did. We had underground irrigation wells to pull us through those bad years. We were the largest gin in the state for three years.”
Regardless of the circumstances, good or bad, Hileman greets each day with the same pleasant, unforced grin.
“During the really lean years, I was the only employee,” Hileman said. “I would have to recruit a new gin crew every year. During the years 1997-2000 we never ginned 1,000 bales in a year. In 1998 we only ginned 204 bales. It was really hard keeping the doors open, trying to make payroll until we would get our first seed check. There was a time when I had six payroll checks that couldn’t be cashed until the revenue started coming in. I enjoyed my work and my farmers and wanted to see it through.”
Strong friendships
Jeannie met Randall Hileman during her junior year in high school, at a local drive-in called Ski Boy, where she worked in Fort Cobb. They were a match from the start she said and were married on Dec. 11, 1971. At the time, he was farming as part of his family’s operation. They continued to expand the farm. The Hilemans raised cattle and at one time had hogs. They also grew wheat, peanuts, cotton and milo. More importantly they also raised a son Aaron and a daughter Sadie.
Fast-forward to 2008.
“We were decorating for Sadie’s junior prom when Randall decided there was something seriously wrong with him,” Jeannie Hileman said. “In June of 2008 we were told he wouldn’t see Sadie graduate unless he got a lung transplant. Talk about heartbreaking, stressful, emotional rollercoaster. Barnes-Jewish Hospital was where he needed to be.”
St. Louis was quite a distance from western Caddo County in Oklahoma. Plus, Randall would have to live within two hours of the hospital. There was a list of qualifications he had to meet before being placed on the transplant list. He checked everything off on his list. His health got better, but his lungs had gotten worse. They were ready to place him on the transplant list.
He would need a caretaker to move to St. Louis with him. Jeannie couldn’t leave her job because Randall’s insurance was through the gin. Aaron had a 4-year old and one on the way. Sadie had graduated, so Sadie and Randall moved to Missouri in July.
While the gin and Hileman have traveled a winding business path together, they’ve also meant more to each other than that.
When Randall became ill, the community had a fundraiser to help with living expenses. Monsanto donated chemical that Jeannie’s producers purchased at an inflated price. Helena Chemical Co. purchased plane tickets for her to visit her husband and daughter.
“Many of my cotton producers helped us so much, financially and emotionally,” Hileman said. “I have helped with many charitable benefits, but this was the hardest. It is much easier to help someone, than to have to accept the help. Most people will be on the transplant list for over a year before a match becomes available. We really did not know what God had planned for us, but we just had to put it in his hands. I had moved them in and helped them get settled, came home to start the wait. I was home less than a week when he got the call, ‘We have lungs for you.’” Aaron, his son Hayden, and Jeannie headed that way, and Randall was already in surgery when they arrived.
“Everything went great, and the rest is history, eight years and two grandsons later,” she said.
Christmas money
In 1990 Hileman was handling the bookkeeping for her husband and his brother when the board of the Carnegie Gin asked if she wanted to hire on to do some seasonal work with farm records. It was an opportunity for “Christmas money.”
She liked it and decided to stay. Others moved on, and Hileman became office manager and by 1995-96 was the gin manager. Consider that 1995 is tied for the third worst cotton year in Oklahoma in production. Things didn’t get a lot prettier: 1996 is the sixth worst, 1998 is the seventh and 1999 ranks eighth.
She was trying to hold on until genetics and more advanced protection against pest and weed threats arrived. “We were going to get rid of boll weevils, bollworms and weeds, but we just didn’t believe we were going to be able to hold onto our cotton gin long enough for all of those things to happen,” Hileman said in an interview with Southwest Farm Press.
They did hold on. How?
“Pride, determination and of course stubbornness,” she said.
Part of that holding on also included Farmers Co-op Gin selling to Farmers Co-op Mill and Elevator in 2002, she said. Hileman continued on as gin manager.
When you travel a path with someone or in this case something, you look out for them. Hileman was determined to take care of the gin.
“Anytime that you lose your infrastructure, you lose a piece of something you can’t get back,” she said. Hileman said the closest gin is roughly a few dozen miles away.
“It would have been hard for my producers to have transitioned to cotton if we didn’t have a gin,” she said. Times got better. The Carnegie Gin has had some record breaking crops in recent years.
Just months ago Carnegie Gin’s new plant opened. However, even the best of times can be challenging.
“This past year has been rough on everyone,” she said. “We started harvest 2016 in the middle of October, and we weren’t finished when the board, general manager and I flew out to North Carolina to look at the gin we purchased for here in Oklahoma. It has been non-stop ever since. We are now running both gins 24/7. I am really excited to have the opportunity to upgrade to such a modern plant.”
At this point, the path Hileman is traveling with the Carnegie Gin appears headed for success.
“I think this new cotton gin is a sign that cotton is here to stay,” she said.

If you could be any kind of animal, what would you be and why? Willowood at Mustang

I would be a cat. They let themselves be known, they don’t take too much from anyone and they appear sweet.

Judy Robertson

I would be and eagle so I could fly and soar above and watch everyone.

Dale Jackson

I would be a dog because everyone seems to like them.

Vera Weisbord

I would be a rabbit, pretty and soft.

Janie Ramey

Dear Savvy Senior,

Are there any special Medicare programs that help seniors with their medication costs? My 74-year-old mother, who lives primarily on her Social Security, takes several high-priced drugs that sap her income even with her Medicare drug plan.  Looking for Assistance

Dear Looking,
Yes, there’s a low-income subsidy program called Extra Help that can assist seniors on a tight budget with paying for their premiums, deductible and co-payments in their Medicare (Part D) prescription drug plan.
Currently around 10 million people are receiving this subsidy, but another two million may qualify for it and don’t even realize it. They’re missing out on hundreds, maybe thousands, of dollars in savings each year.
Changes in the law make it easier than ever to qualify for the Extra Help program. Even if your mom applied and didn’t qualify before, she may be eligible now. The amount of additional assistance she would receive depends on her income and assets. If she qualifies for help, she’ll pay no more than $3.35 for a generic drug and $8.35 for a brand-name drug in 2018.
To get the subsidy, your mom’s assets can’t be more than $14,100 (or $28,150 for married couples living together). Bank accounts, stocks and bonds count as assets, but her home, vehicle, personal belongings, life insurance and burial plots do not.
Also, your mom’s monthly income can’t be more than $1,538 (or $2,078 for married couples). If your mom supports a family member who lives with her, or lives in Alaska or Hawaii, her income can be higher.
In addition, the government won’t count any money if your mom receives help for household expenses like food, rent, mortgage payments, utilities and property taxes.
How To Apply
There are three ways to apply for Extra Help: online at SSA.gov/prescriptionhelp; by calling Social Security at 800-772-1213; or by visiting her local Social Security office.
The application form is easy to complete, but you’ll need your mom’s Social Security number and information about her bank balances, pensions and investments. Social Security will review her application and send her a letter within a few weeks letting you know whether she qualifies.
If your mom doesn’t qualify for Extra Help, she may still be able to get help from a state pharmacy assistance program or a patient assistance program. Visit BenefitsCheckUp.org and click on “Medications” to search for these programs.
Other Medicare Assistance
If your mom is eligible for Extra Help, she may also qualify for help with her other Medicare expenses through her state’s Medicare Savings Program.
State Medicaid programs partner with the federal government, so income and asset qualifications vary depending on where she lives. Medicare Savings Programs will pay her entire Medicare Part B premium each month. Some also pay for Part B coinsurance and copayments, depending on her income. Contact your mom’s state Medicaid office to determine if she qualifies for benefits in her state.
You can also get help through her State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP), which provides free one-on-one Medicare counseling in person or over the phone. To locate a SHIP counselor in your area, visit ShiptaCenter.org or call the eldercare locator at 800-677-1116.

Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book.

The seventh annual Cross Family Benefit for the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation will be held on May 7 in Kingfisher. Cowboys from across the country will saddle up to raise money for cancer research and also to honor the life of Floyd Cross.
Cross battled – and defeated – recurring bouts of colon and liver cancer for 12 years before passing away in 2016. The Cross family continues to fight the disease in his honor by raising funds to support cancer research at OMRF.
“The Cross family is a great example of how Oklahomans can do something meaningful to help combat diseases like cancer,” said OMRF Vice President of Development Penny Voss. “Grassroots efforts like this one make a big difference in giving momentum to the world-class research happening right here in Oklahoma City.”
In addition to the steer wrestling competition and t-shirt sales, raffle tickets will be sold for $1 or six for $5 for a wide variety of prizes. A weekend getaway to Red River, New Mexico, will be up for auction.
The event will be held at 1 p.m. at the Kingfisher Rodeo Roundup Club Arena. To enter or for more information, call Sherrie Cross at (405) 375-4872 or (405) 313-1776. The books are open from 10 a.m. until noon on May 7. Admission is free.

Kevin Elledge has been named chief administrative officer for OU Physicians, the physician practice of the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine.
In his new role, Elledge will work closely with OU Physician leadership to advance the mission of patient care across the OU Health Sciences Center enterprise. He will be responsible for the collective business and operational performance of the OU Physicians clinical practice, including the provision of core practice management services, revenue cycle functions, financial management, clinical operations, strategy development, information technology and analytics. Elledge will support the delivery of high-quality patient care across OU Physicians practice divisions and clinical units and will ensure coordination with the University’s missions of education and research.
Elledge has more than 14 years of experience with OU Physicians, most recently serving as the executive director of operations.
“As interim chief administrative officer, Kevin has worked tirelessly and very effectively to advance a number of important initiatives for our group,” said OU Physicians President Jesus Medina, M.D. “He has earned my respect as a trustworthy administrator, manager and leader. I am excited to continue working with him for the benefit of our organization.”
Elledge holds a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from the University of Central Oklahoma. Prior to joining OU Physicians, he resided in Atlanta where he founded and operated a successful healthcare technology company.
With more than 1,000 doctors and advanced practice providers, OU Physicians is the state’s largest physician group. The practice encompasses almost every adult and child specialty. Many OU Physicians have expertise in the management of complex conditions that is unavailable anywhere else in the state, region or sometimes even the nation. Some have pioneered surgical procedures or innovations in patient care that are world firsts.

Ten (10) law enforcement officers who died in the line of duty in Oklahoma will be among the three hundred and sixty (360) new names to be engraved on the National Law Enforcement Officer’s Memorial in Washington, D.C. Those names will be dedicated during the 30th Annual Candle Light Vigil the evening of May 13, 2018. Officers being added from Oklahoma are:
Payne County Deputy Sheriff Shack Palmer, died December.10, 1911, from gunshot wounds that he received late the evening of December 8th attempting an arrest near Fisher;
Bristow Police Detective William H. Johnston, died September 20, 1924, when his car crashed a mile north of Bristow attempting to intercept some Kellyville bank robbers;
Perkins Police Officer Henry L. Cotton, died April 29, 1986, from complications following surgery for injuries sustained during a fight making an arrest March 28th;
Logan County Deputy Sheriff Edward J. Wright, died October 23, 2016, after suffering an on duty heart attack late the evening of October 20th;
Oklahoma Department of Corrections Corporal Stephen R. Jenkins, Jr,, died January 7, 2017, from a heart attack he suffered after chasing an inmate with contraband at the Clara Waters Correctional Center in Oklahoma City;
Sac & Fox Nation Police Officer Nathan B. Graves, died January 24, 2017, about 6 a.m. in a head on traffic accident 11 miles north of Stroud on Highway 99 ;
Craig County Deputy Sheriff Sean F. Cookson, died February 27, 2017, from injuries sustained in a traffic accident the morning of February 22nd while in route to training;
Tecumseh Police Officer Justin M. Terney, died March 28, 2017, after being shot twice during a traffic stop about 11:30 p.m. the night before;
Logan County Deputy Sheriff David J. Wade, died April. 18, 2017, shortly after being shot several times while serving an eviction notice in Mulhall;
Oklahoma Highway Patrol Lieutenant D. Heath Meyer, died July 24, 2017, from injuries sustained when he was accidently struck late the evening of July 14th by an OHP unit after he laid out stop sticks for a pursuit north bound on I-35 near NE 27th Street in Moore.
For more information on these officers and the other almost eight hundred officers who have died in the line of duty in Oklahoma, both before and after statehood, go to the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Memorial web site at www.oklemem.com.