St. Francis Hospital and OSU Medical Center are teaming up to bring a level one trauma center to Tulsa, joining Oklahoma City who currently has the only one in the state.

GT Bynum, Saint Francis Vice President of Community and Government Affairs, expressed the importance of a center in Tulsa.

“When you’re in a horrible accident, every minute that goes by is challenging for your survivability of that accident,” Bynum said.

Two bills recently became law to establish a public-private partnership for the center that will offer both pediatric and adult care as well as training for trauma surgeons. When this trauma center is built, northeastern Oklahoma will be able to treat their patients without sending them to OKC.

Bynum said trauma surgeons are leaving to practice in other states because there is only one level one center in Oklahoma. That will change when the Tulsa center is operational.

“The state of Oklahoma is providing $8 Million toward this which we believe will allow about $22 Million more to be pulled down from the feds for a total of $30 Million, which does not cover the cost of operating it but will help make it financially sustainable over the long term,” Bynum said.

At level one trauma centers, surgeons and specialists are available 24 hours a day and can treat patients from the initial trauma to rehabilitation.

“Right now, we’re in this kind of void where the nearest level one trauma centers are in Oklahoma City, Little Rock, Kansas City, and Dallas,” he said.

The trauma center will be housed in the St. Francis tower which cost several hundred millions of dollars to build, according to Bynum.