Clinical Component

Navigating the Clinical Component

A Practice Built for Both Excellence and Balance

Your clinical practice will encompass the full spectrum of interventional cardiology in a setting where you can truly make a difference in patients' lives. The population you'll serve presents with advanced cardiac disease – these are patients who, as one physician noted, "don't exercise" and arrive with complex multi-vessel disease, chronic total occlusions (CTOs), and acute coronary syndromes. Unlike metropolitan practices where patients often have regular cardiac follow-up, many of your patients will be seeing a cardiologist for the first time during their heart attack, creating opportunities for profound intervention and long-term relationship building.

The cath lab currently manages 8-12 cases daily across two functioning labs, with procedures ranging from diagnostic catheterizations to complex CTOs and peripheral interventions. Your recently arrived colleague has already performed CTO procedures within his first six weeks, demonstrating both the case complexity available and the supportive environment for advanced interventional work. The newly renovated labs feature modern equipment, and with the hybrid suite coming online in February 2026, you'll have access to facilities that rival major metropolitan centers while maintaining the efficiency that smaller hospitals provide.

Clinical Practice Elements:

  • Patient volume of 20-25 clinic patients daily when fully established, with inherited panel ensuring immediate practice stability
  • Procedure mix including diagnostic catheterizations, PCIs, CTOs, peripheral interventions, and potential structural heart procedures for interested physicians
  • STEMI call currently 1:6, improving to 1:7 with your addition – significantly better than most metropolitan programs
  • Weekend call typically involves 1-6 STEMIs, with efficient staff response and home call with remote EMR access
  • Meditech EMR system (transitioning August 2026 from current GEMS system) with unified hospital-clinic platform
  • Structural heart program support as backup for TAVR and other procedures with newly recruited specialist, Dr. Jagjit Khosla
  • Teaching opportunities with rotating residents from OU cardiac anesthesia program and Oklahoma State ER residency
  • One Call transfer system bringing acute cardiac patients from surrounding facilities within 30 minutes

Support Infrastructure:

Your practice benefits from exceptional clinical support that enhances both efficiency and job satisfaction. The cardiology clinic operates as a comprehensive cardiovascular center with on-site nuclear imaging (12-14 studies daily), echocardiography with five new ultrasound machines, stress testing, and a dedicated pacemaker clinic. The pre-operative process happens entirely within the clinic – your patients receive their labs, education, and preparation without hospital visits, creating continuity and convenience. Unlike many programs where physicians struggle with fragmented care, everything flows through one coordinated system.

The call structure reflects thoughtful planning for physician wellness. When interventionalists are on call solo, they handle STEMI and urgent interventions. When paired with non-invasive cardiologists, the general cardiologist manages consults while you provide STEMI backup. The system includes phone triage nurses who screen calls, reducing interruptions for routine questions, and colleagues who respect boundaries during off-time – a cultural element often missing in larger programs.

This clinical environment offers you the opportunity to practice sophisticated interventional cardiology with genuine autonomy while maintaining reasonable work-life integration. You'll handle complex cases that challenge your skills, build lasting relationships with patients who desperately need your expertise, and work within a system designed to support rather than exhaust its physicians.

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