How Donors Are Keeping Patients Like Becky Out of the ER
Becky, a patient at INTEGRIS Health, meets with two Community Care Coordination team members during a follow-up appointment to manage chronic health conditions.
Your support helps break the cycle of crisis care across Oklahoma
Becky sat alone in the ER. It wasn’t the first time.
In one year, she’d already been hospitalized four times and had visited the emergency room three more. Each time she was discharged, the cycle repeated. Lung and heart conditions, a stroke, severe malnourishment — and no stable place to live. Becky was what some call “couch homeless,” staying with whoever would take her in. And because she relied on oxygen to breathe, even local shelters couldn’t help.
But thanks to donor support of INTEGRIS Health Foundation, Becky’s story took a different turn.
From Emergency Rooms to Long-Term Care: How Community Care Coordination Changes Lives
The INTEGRIS Health Community Care Coordination Team is a group of specially trained nurses and community health workers who provide critical support to patients at risk of falling through the cracks.
When Becky first walked into their office, she was uncertain — carrying a plastic bag filled with dozens of medications and very little hope. But that visit marked the beginning of a powerful change.
Support That Goes Beyond the Bedside
The team helped Becky:
Organize and prioritize her medications
Schedule key cardiology and pulmonary appointments
Access oxygen refills and durable medical equipment
Enroll in Medicaid Advantage to cover prescriptions
Receive help with depression, anxiety, and chronic pain
They even provided her with a mattress to ease her pain, meals through support services, and a calendar to track her appointments.
Christina Stuart, an advanced practice nurse on the team, remembers those early visits.
“At first, Becky wasn’t sure she could trust us. But over time, as she saw we were truly there for her, she started to open up. That’s when the real progress began.”
A Better Future — Because of Donors Like You
Today, Becky is thriving. She continues her preventive care with the Community Care Coordination team and has only had one ER visit — due to a fall — since beginning the program.
“We couldn’t do this without donor support,” says Christina. “It’s your gifts that make it possible to purchase medical equipment, medications, transportation, lab work — all of it. You’re giving people a real chance.”
Why Your Gift Matters
When you give to the INTEGRIS Health Foundation, you’re not just funding programs.
You’re changing the trajectory of lives like Becky’s. You’re helping us:
Prevent avoidable ER visits and hospitalizations
Support patients with complex medical and social needs
Ensure no one falls through the cracks, regardless of their ability to pay
“Without this kind of support,” Christina says, “we’d be left hoping for the best — knowing the follow-through just wouldn’t happen. You remove the hopelessness for our patients and for us. Thank you, truly.”
Want to Help Patients Like Becky?
Your generosity keeps care going — even after patients leave the hospital.
Story by Zoee Zuerker