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Claremore hospital adds ER flex beds, restores fluoroscopy service and standardizes surgery scheduling
Summary
Captain Murray reported a 24% year-over-year January increase in Claremore emergency visits and described operational changes — moving beds into a flex space, adding contracted ER physicians and installing a new fluoroscopy unit — to manage patient flow.
Captain Murray reported that Claremore hospital experienced a 24 percent increase in patient volume in January 2025 compared with January 2024 and described steps taken to ease emergency-department wait times.
To address the surge, staff converted a former physical-therapy space adjacent to the ER into a three-bed flex area and drew on a contract with Oklahoma State emergency physicians to provide additional board-certified staff for that space. “It’s allowed us to get that influx under control… and make sure we keep that ‘left without being seen’ rate as low as possible,” Captain Murray said.
Claremore’s surgery clinic moved to a standardized scheduling model in February, which Captain Murray said added roughly 14 to 16 additional available surgery appointments on certain days and is intended to increase the number of surgeries and scopes performed at the hospital.
The hospital also completed an extensive remodel of its X-ray/fluoroscopy room and installed a new ceiling-mounted fluoroscopy unit that was put into operation in early February. Captain Murray said the remodel required new ceiling supports and structural work; the unit was installed Feb. 1 and training finished within days, with patient care resuming around Feb. 5. That restored a service Claremore had been without for about a year and reduces referrals out of the system.
Why it matters: the operational moves aim to keep more patients in the Claremore system, shorten waits and preserve revenue that otherwise would go to outside referrals.
Discussion and context: Captain Murray framed the changes as short-term operational responses and part of a broader effort to align Claremore’s capacity with demand. The hospital’s use of contracted physicians and repurposing of adjacent space are interim measures while broader planning continues.
Ending: Council members thanked Captain Murray for the report; no formal decisions or budget votes were recorded in the discussion.
