OKC, New Promise Land of SouthWest?

[progressiveboy]

To work.. Not overall. Research is very low at OU Medical.

It is nowhere near UTSW (in Dallas) and Baylor (in Houston). Nowhere near.

I have to disagree. I live in Dallas and I am originally from OKC. I will have to say that OKC is just as good if not better than Dallas in the Research department. OKC has a proton cancer research facility and many biomedical companies are either based over in the Presbyterian Hospital area. In addition OU is building a comprehensive cancer center for treatment and research and is to be affiliated with MD Anderson. In addition, OKC has their own "regional" blood bank that on par with Carter Blood Institute in Texas. I think OKC for the most part has better hospitals too. Presbyterian and Baylor are good in Dallas but for a city as big as Dallas it has a lot to desire in their medical district. Come on now, Parkland Hospital is a nasty disgrace and St. Paul is ok but nothing stands out with them.

[ronronnie1]

So you want less Christians and more Muslims?

Less of both would be nice.

[JohnDenver]

I have to disagree. I live in Dallas and I am originally from OKC. I will have to say that OKC is just as good if not better than Dallas in the Research department. OKC has a proton cancer research facility and many biomedical companies are either based over in the Presbyterian Hospital area. In addition OU is building a comprehensive cancer center for treatment and research and is to be affiliated with MD Anderson. In addition, OKC has their own "regional" blood bank that on par with Carter Blood Institute in Texas. I think OKC for the most part has better hospitals too. Presbyterian and Baylor are good in Dallas but for a city as big as Dallas it has a lot to desire in their medical district. Come on now, Parkland Hospital is a nasty disgrace and St. Paul is ok but nothing stands out with them.

I will disagree with you too. I am from Dallas, wife went to UTSW and is at OU HSC now. As far as what OU has, it is fine. This is the largest city in OK and the capital, it SHOULD have what it has, and it SHOULD have much more. Parkland is on its way out, the City of Dallas has passed a bond to build a new county hospital. There is a whole city of hopitals around the UTSW complex.. not just Parkland and St. Paul. There is also a top notch Childrens hospital (which puts OKC's to shame), heart and cancer hospitals.

Earlier in this thread you will find the numbers for research going on at OUHSC versus UTSW and Baylor. It isn't just my opinion that they don't compare, they just don't.

I don't see the OKC medical field as thriving. Growing? Yes it is... as well it should be because that field on a whole is growing at 18% per year. It would take a complete idiot of a city to not see some growth when the whole industry is growing at that rate.

I like the OUHSC. It seems to be doing well.. OU needs to do more to make it stand up to competition though.

[plmccordj]

Deleted

[Spartan]

and recession proof ecomony.

The ecomony is very recession-proof, whatever that means.

[mugofbeer]

I will disagree with you too. I am from Dallas, wife went to UTSW and is at OU HSC now. As far as what OU has, it is fine. This is the largest city in OK and the capital, it SHOULD have what it has, and it SHOULD have much more. Parkland is on its way out, the City of Dallas has passed a bond to build a new county hospital. There is a whole city of hopitals around the UTSW complex.. not just Parkland and St. Paul. There is also a top notch Childrens hospital (which puts OKC's to shame), heart and cancer hospitals.

Earlier in this thread you will find the numbers for research going on at OUHSC versus UTSW and Baylor. It isn't just my opinion that they don't compare, they just don't.

I don't see the OKC medical field as thriving. Growing? Yes it is... as well it should be because that field on a whole is growing at 18% per year. It would take a complete idiot of a city to not see some growth when the whole industry is growing at that rate.

I like the OUHSC. It seems to be doing well.. OU needs to do more to make it stand up to competition though.

Unfortunately, the OUHSC doesn't get the benefit of massive estate donations from entertainers and business families the way UTSW gets. I recall several gifts to UTSW in excess of $10 million while I lived there.

[ljbab728]

I will disagree with you too. I am from Dallas, wife went to UTSW and is at OU HSC now. As far as what OU has, it is fine. This is the largest city in OK and the capital, it SHOULD have what it has, and it SHOULD have much more. Parkland is on its way out, the City of Dallas has passed a bond to build a new county hospital. There is a whole city of hopitals around the UTSW complex.. not just Parkland and St. Paul. There is also a top notch Childrens hospital (which puts OKC's to shame), heart and cancer hospitals.

Earlier in this thread you will find the numbers for research going on at OUHSC versus UTSW and Baylor. It isn't just my opinion that they don't compare, they just don't.

I don't see the OKC medical field as thriving. Growing? Yes it is... as well it should be because that field on a whole is growing at 18% per year. It would take a complete idiot of a city to not see some growth when the whole industry is growing at that rate.

I like the OUHSC. It seems to be doing well.. OU needs to do more to make it stand up to competition though.

Just what is it that OU could do to make it stand up to competition and stay within budget constraints?

[Spartan]

UTSW is not the model to follow, the Texas Medical Center in Houston is, by far. Houston, thanks more to their incredible medical research sector than the oil and gas sector believe it or not, has more bio jobs than any other city in the U.S.

THAT is the kind of thing that you establish and then you start keeping your college grads and attracting other place's young professionals as well.

[benman]

One BIG problem with this "promise land of the Southwest." We are not in the Southwest. We are in the lower MIDwest. Many people are starting to accept that. Oklahoman's need to follow suit if they have not yet done so.

Absolutely NOT. 1st, Oklahoma is a Southern state by history. During the Civil War Oklahoma was Indian Territory and the tribes fought for the Confederacy.
2nd, look at a map and its a Southern state geographically. No, I wouldnt consider Oklahoma part of the "Old South" (Georgia, S. Carolina, etc) but in modern day terms it is associated with the South.
3rd, Midwestern states are Ohio, Illinois, Minnesota, etc. Pretty sure Oklahoma is completely different them and I sure dont want to be associated with those states.

[smooth]

Absolutely NOT. 1st, Oklahoma is a Southern state by history. During the Civil War Oklahoma was Indian Territory and the tribes fought for the Confederacy.
2nd, look at a map and its a Southern state geographically. No, I wouldnt consider Oklahoma part of the "Old South" (Georgia, S. Carolina, etc) but in modern day terms it is associated with the South.
3rd, Midwestern states are Ohio, Illinois, Minnesota, etc. Pretty sure Oklahoma is completely different them and I sure dont want to be associated with those states.

I guess you can think what you want, but the country is accepting the FACT that Oklahoma is midwest.

[Midtowner]

I guess you can think what you want, but the country is accepting the FACT that Oklahoma is midwest.

What fact do you rest this assertion upon?

FWIW, the U.S. Census Bureau defines Oklahoma as West South Central. Further, the current more-less official Midwestern states are the northern part of the Louisiana Purchase, the southernmost two states being Kansas and Missouri.

What is "Southwestern" is a little more tricky to definite because depending on who you ask, you're only talking about New Mexico and Arizona, or you're talking about NM, AZ, Nevada and California... or you could shift easterly and say NM, AZ, Texas and Oklahoma. It's pretty much universal if you look through these arbitrary regional definitions that Oklahoma is almost always (I'd say always, but there may be some outliers, but those'd definitely be outliers) grouped with Texas.

I like the Census Bureau's wording for accuracy, "West South Central" is accurate. It doesn't roll of the tongue like Southwest though.

But again, I renew my question: Who the hell cares?

[benman]

I guess you can think what you want, but the country is accepting the FACT that Oklahoma is midwest.

haha nope, not going to accept it. Its not a fact and its certainly not true.

[JohnDenver]

But again, I renew my question: Who the hell cares?

Over the past few years, while entertaining med students from various states who are applying to OUHSC, often times they ask this exact question. They almost without exception say that OK is a midwest state. They think it has more in common with Kansas than Texas.

It is an interesting question, even if it doesn't matter.

[FormerFloridian]

This is coming from someone who has lived all over the place. I grew up in CA and most recently moved from FL. Moving to OK has been the best decision I could have made. I had been trying to get a government job in FL for the longest time and had no success. The only place that would hire me was a VERY well-known retail and grocery store. I had been without work for about a year before I gave in and took a minimum wage job. I moved to OK on July 31st and by the 15th of September was starting my first day at a state agency where I currently work. I have made a lot of progress that realistically would not have been possible in any other state or city. So believe it or not, compared to the rest of the country, OK is booming.

[Platemaker]

One BIG problem with this "promise land of the Southwest." We are not in the Southwest. We are in the lower MIDwest. Many people are starting to accept that. Oklahoman's need to follow suit if they have not yet done so.

I just read this... funny because yesterday I resisted posting something along the lines of "at the least the thread starter idn't sya 'OKC, New Promis Land of the Midwest."

We are unfortunately in 'fly-over country'... and ignorant left and right coasters are the ones that call it Midwest... EVERYTHING between NYC and LA to them is the Midwest... doesn't make it so.

[Platemaker]

... The Midwest can have Tulsa though... lol

I'm originally from Altus.... noone could deny that it is the Southwest.

[progressiveboy]

I guess you can think what you want, but the country is accepting the FACT that Oklahoma is midwest.

We can argue all day long about if Oklahoma is a midwest state our if it is a Southern or Southwestern city. The "fact" lies that if you look up on google or any dictionary it clearly states in most publications that Oklahoma is a South Central or Southern plains state. So to accept the "fact" that Oklahoma is a midwest state is somewhat delusional and false. I personally prefer the South over the Midwest. The Midwest does not have the historical significance like the South. In Oklahoma, the Southern part of the state it is referred to as "Little Dixie". The culture of Oklahoma leans more to the South than the midwest.

[ddavidson8]

You're all idiots. Oklahoma City is the new Mormon Temple of the northern Texas red dirt plains region.

[okcpulse]

You're all idiots. Oklahoma City is the new Mormon Temple of the northern Texas red dirt plains region.

Keep that Texas crap off of Oklahoma's land.

[Midtowner]

You're all idiots. Oklahoma City is the new Mormon Temple of the northern Texas red dirt plains region.

+1.

This is clearly supported by the facts.

[Elliot]

shhh, be quiet, I think OKC is just the right population size right now, we don't need a come hither slogan, "New Promise Land of the SouthWest".

[OKC@heart]

OKC may be seeing "growth like never before," but it's still not even close to Austin let alone Dallas or Houston. OKC does NOT have a "dominant 'medical field' industry" and OU HSC is far from being a major medical research center on a national level. Have you been to Austin lately? The amount of development and activity in downtown OKC pales in comparison. Texas's cities left OKC in the dust a long time ago and the gap continues to get wider--MAPS 3 isn't likely to reverse that trend, either.

Perhaps in the construction of wind farms around town, but as far as the R&D of these technologies is concerned--no way. Again, OKC has been left in the dust because there's very little high technology R&D, particularly compared to Austin.

I have to take issue with this very broad and generalized statement. Austin is a sister city and I do not refute the growth and the desirablilty of place that Austin has going for it, and they do have vastly out paced us as far as the Tech Sector jobs however OKC is seeing substantial growth through the recession. There have been plenty of major projects put on hold or scrapped alltogether there in Austin due to the economy.

I guess my point is I spend an awful lot of time there in Austin and I just think that Austin is just further down the path that OKC is running. OKC was left in the dust at one time but brother, I am here to tell ya that the afterburners have kicked in and we are on the move! I think that it really does not have to be an us or them but as sister cities what can we each learn from each other?

[OKC@heart]

You're all idiots. Oklahoma City is the new Mormon Temple of the northern Texas red dirt plains region.

What in the heck do you mean by that? Your random refernce to religous facility seems to have no relevancy to the topic at hand and so am curious why it was thrown in?

[Oil Capital]

Mercy Health Center is a Magnet hospital. It is in the same league as John Hopkins and M.D. Anderson. And lest you forget that Oklahoma City has one of only three proton cancer treatment centers in the U.S. with another opening at OUHSC.

Where do you come up with this stuff? Mercy Health Center in the same league as John [sic] Hopkins and M.D. Anderson???? According to whom?
And it would be best to "forget" that OKC has one of only three proton cancer treatment centers in the U.S., since it is not now and has never been true. There were at least 5 proton centers in the U.S. prior to the opening of OKC's. OKC's was one of a group of 8 additional that were all under development as of May 2008 (and that does not include OUHSC's).

[bluedogok]

... The Midwest can have Tulsa though... lol

I'm originally from Altus.... noone could deny that it is the Southwest.

So are my parents, I was born there but they moved to OKC when I was 6 months old...and at one time it used to be part of Texas.

...and if you are talking about "new" med students then most have very rudimentary geography skills, but then it seems so many people (including my wife) are "geographically challenged" so it doesn't just affect med students.