I am looking forward to serving as President of the TCMS. In the January newsletter, I shared a bit about my background, and this month, I hope to meet with many of you at the TCMS Presidential Inauguration and Retiree Dinner at Southern Hills Country Club on Friday, February 21st.
In preparing for my presidential year, I had two valuable meetings. My first meeting was with our most recent TCMS President, Dr. Stephen Bruns and our Past President, Dr. Sharon Smallwood. Dr. Bruns and Smallwood shared valuable advice and guidance in taking on this role. I also met with our Executive Director, Mark McElreath and the rest of our staff: Joetta Cunningham, Pam Oppelt and Ashley Bishop to review our annual calendar and practices. I also took some time to read our Constitution and Bylaws. These were last updated in 2010 and some of the content needs revision and I plan to have a small work group begin this task of reviewing the bylaws and making recommendations for revision. However, I was most struck by our statements of “purpose” and “mission”.I will share those here, along with some of my ideas for meeting these aims in the coming year.
From our Constitution and Bylaws, the “Purpose” of the Tulsa County Medical Society is to:
Promote the art and science of medicine
Foster ethical practices among members
Unite the medical profession in promoting public health.
The “Mission” of the Tulsa County Medical Society is:
To be an advocate for physicians and patients
To support quality healthcare
To be a leader in healthcare reform
To sustain a continuing dialogue between the membership and the community in which we live and work.
I hope you will take a moment to absorb these words and think about how the TCMS is achieving its mission and purpose and consider if opportunities exist to better meet these objectives.
In 2025, I hope to:
Elevate our efforts to support quality healthcare by leading our group and joining the OSMA and the AMA in supporting physician-led healthcare.
Promote public health by increasing physician and community awareness of the negative effects of cannabis on individual’s mental and physical health.
Join the OSMA and the AMA as they fight for Medicare reform, and for legislative changes to address dangerous insurance practices. (See letter from OSMA President, Edgar Boyd, MD: An Oklahoma doctor's legislative wish list to improve health care outcomes for patients, providers • Oklahoma Voice)
This month, I will be joining other members of the OSMA in Washington, DC to participate in the AMA’s 2025 National Advocacy Conference. While there, our contingent plans to meet with all Oklahoma legislators and discuss the most pressing issues that affect the delivery of quality healthcare in Oklahoma and the nation.
I hope you join me in these efforts this year, and I hope to see you at Southern Hills on Friday, February 21st!
Sincerely,
Ondria C. Gleason, MD
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