OU Health and DispatchHealth Collaborate to Expand Access to On-Demand Health Care in Oklahoma City

OKLAHOMA CITY – OU Health has announced a collaboration with DispatchHealth to provide additional services to patients and help minimize hospital readmissions. DispatchHealth is a national provider of on-demand health care.

This collaboration will allow OU Health to provide patients ranging from three months old and up, the opportunity to receive high-quality, affordable health care in the comfort of their own home or place of need through DispatchHealth services. This will help reduce unnecessary emergency room (ER) visits and hospitalizations, improve clinical outcomes and decrease costs for patients. Up to 25 percent of patients return to the ER after being discharged and 50 percent of people who visit the ER every day could be treated in a lower-cost setting.

DispatchHealth can treat a wide range of common to complex illnesses and injuries, such as urinary tract infections, respiratory infections, fall injuries, dehydration, lacerations and more, all within a patient’s home for one-tenth of the cost of the average ER visit. A patient (or patient’s caregiver) can conveniently request DispatchHealth’s services via phone, mobile app or through the company’s website.

“We greatly value the health and wellbeing of our patients at OU Health,” said Dale Bratzler, D.O., OU Health chief quality officer. “This collaboration helps us ensure our patients continue to receive high-quality care after being discharged from the hospital.”

This collaboration is especially beneficial to the senior population, who often struggle with access to care in their time of need. A visit from DispatchHealth could provide an early intervention that would keep a patient from needing to be admitted to the hospital, such as a minor post-operative issue that doesn't need to be treated in an ER.

“There are many circumstances where a patient ends up unnecessarily readmitted to the hospital or ER due to lack of quality care after discharge,” said Amy Evans, market director of Oklahoma City, DispatchHealth. “By partnering with OU Health, we’re able to expand access to care for residents in Oklahoma City in the comfort of their own homes.”

To guarantee continuity of care, DispatchHealth provides a detailed report to each primary care physician, senior living community or home health agency, in addition to electronically sending prescriptions to a patient’s pharmacy, if needed.

DispatchHealth is available in the Oklahoma City area from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. local time, 365 days a year, including holidays. Patients can request care by calling 405-724-6659, using the free DispatchHealth mobile app or by visiting at DispatchHealth.com.

About OU Health

OU Health — along with its academic partner, the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center — is the state’s only comprehensive academic health system of hospitals, clinics and centers of excellence. With 11,000 employees and more than 1,300 physicians and advanced practice providers, OU Health is home to Oklahoma’s largest physician network with a complete range of specialty care. OU Health serves Oklahoma and the region with the state’s only freestanding children’s hospital, the only National Cancer Institute-Designated Stephenson Cancer Center and Oklahoma’s flagship hospital, which serves as the state’s only Level 1 trauma center. OU Health’s mission is to lead healthcare in patient care, education and research. To learn more, visit oumedicine.com.

About DispatchHealth

DispatchHealth is redefining healthcare delivery to offer on-demand care for people of all ages in the comfort of their own home. DispatchHealth’s board-certified medical teams are equipped with all the tools necessary to treat common to complex injuries and illnesses. DispatchHealth works closely with payers, providers, health systems and others to deliver care in the home to reduce unnecessary emergency room visits and hospital readmissions. Medical teams are available during the day and also on weekends, evenings and holidays, and can be requested via app, online or a quick phone call. DispatchHealth is partnered with most major insurance companies. For more information, visit DispatchHealth.com