Hurricane Katrina proved that INTEGRIS Baptist Medical Center was more than just an Oklahoma City asset — it was a crucial provider of critical care for the entire region. And within its own community, the medical center responded to increasing patient volume with yet more expansion.

Staying current with public health initiatives and evidence-based preventive care, INTEGRIS Baptist Medical Center went smoke-free in 2004. President Stan Hupfeld noted, “It’s the right thing to do.”

All was going smoothly at IBMC when Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast in 2005. Thousands of victims were displaced and housed temporarily at Camp Gruber in Muskogee, Oklahoma. Responding to this extreme need, more than 50 INTEGRIS nurses volunteered to treat victims at Camp Gruber and in parts of Louisiana.

The hurricane, however, did not account for the steep increase in emergency room and urgent care visits that occurred in the early years of the 21st century. Instead, that trend was due to problems accessing health care and an increase in uninsured patients. IBMC leadership had no choice but to continue expanding to meet the need. The expansion added the Naifeh Families Chest Pain Center and connected the emergency department directly to diagnostic radiology, CT scan and ultrasound services.

November 2016 brought another administrative change in the person of Chris Hammes, who became president of IBMC following the promotion of Bruce Lawrence to CEO of INTEGRIS Health Inc.

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