Dean McGee Eye Institute

PROJECT PURPOSE

Currently, only one board-certified ophthalmologist serves the eastern I-40 corridor and southeastern quadrant of the state. This ophthalmologist, located in Shawnee, will retire soon. His retirement, along with the 11% decrease in ophthalmologists accepting Medicaid that has occurred since the onset of the pandemic, will drastically diminish access to medical eye care for this underserved portion of Oklahoma. Patients will be required to travel further to receive care. This project will ensure a continued point of access for comprehensive ophthalmic care while also expanding subspecialty services for this population and addressing the delay in eye care due to COVID-19. We will accomplish this by establishing a Dean McGee Eye Institute (DMEI) clinic in Shawnee via purchasing the building of the retiring ophthalmologist, renovating the workspace to accommodate more subspecialty providers, and acquiring new equipment necessary to provide cutting-edge care. DMEI is the only nonprofit eye institute in Oklahoma, and many of the services and treatments we perform are unavailable elsewhere in the region. This project will increase access to these services for 25% of the state, including Medicaid patients disproportionately affected by COVID-19, and complements a similar project for western Oklahoma that DMEI has submitted for ARPA funding.

EVIDENCE

According to the Oklahoma Medical Board, there are no other board-certified ophthalmologists located in this project?s 17-county region. Per the Oklahoma Health Care Authority, between 2020 and 2021, there was an 11% decrease in the number of ophthalmologists accepting Medicaid patients. Additionally, the Rural Health Information Hub and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate that residents in these counties have higher rates of diabetes and hypertension, increasing their risk of developing severe COVID-19 as well as diabetic eye disease and glaucoma. Research published on PubMed indicates that the pandemic has resulted in delayed care for these ocular diseases.

POPULATION DESCRIPTION

According to the United States Department of Agriculture, rural residents are more vulnerable to severe illness or death from COVID-19 than urban residents because of factors such as underlying health problems, older age, and lack of health insurance. A policy brief from the Infectious Diseases Society of America echoes these findings and states vulnerabilities are exacerbated by the fact that 80% of rural residents live in medically underserved communities. Diabetes and hypertension are common underlying health problems in the rural counties this project will serve. These two conditions are associated with more severe COVID-19 disease and death, as well as diabetic eye disease, including diabetic retinopathy, and glaucoma, two of the leading causes of blindness in Oklahoma. Delayed care due to COVID-19 leads to progression of these ocular diseases. Establishing a clinic in Shawnee will enable DMEI to provide the vulnerable rural populations in eastern/southeastern Oklahoma, including those on Medicaid, with a point of access for quality medical eye care. This will allow for more timely diagnosis and treatment of diabetic eye disease, glaucoma, and other ocular conditions for which treatment has been delayed due to the pandemic, thus reducing the burden of vision loss within these communities.

PERFORMANCE MEASURING

For a capital project such as this, the purchase of the building, timely completion of renovations, and acquisition of needed capital equipment will measure project performance. Regular updates will be available to allow adequate monitoring of progress towards completion and to address any unforeseen issues that might arise.

ONGOING INVESTMENT AMOUNT

$

ONGOING INVESTMENT DESCRIPTION

None

ONGOING INVESTMENT REQUIRED

Able to continue operation without additional funding from the State of Oklahoma