FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, May 29, 2008         

CONTACT:
Karla Webb, Marketing Consultant
Eastern Oklahoma Medical Center
918.721.9452
www.eomchospital.com

Healthcare Phone Survey Scheduled
Poteau, Oklahoma -- A professional polling group working with the Oklahoma Rural Health Works will conduct a random telephone survey of healthcare in LeFlore County and the surrounding towns June 9th through June 23rd. People contacted will be asked to participate in a 10-15 minute questionnaire. The survey is designed to measure the strengths and weaknesses of Eastern Oklahoma Medical Center, local healthcare providers and the community’s future healthcare needs.
Questions will range from new services needed to likes and dislikes about the current status of the healthcare services provided in the area.  The polling group will call residents in the area until they receive a total of 200 participants. Residents surveyed will include certain percentages over 65 and under 65. Caller IDs should identify the polling group as “Consumer Logic”. All answers will be confidential and only the overall total responses will be publicized. Participants will only be asked to share information relevant to their healthcare experience. 
Eastern Oklahoma Medical Center’s Chief Executive Officer, Terry Buckner, initiated the survey with Oklahoma Rural Health Works to evaluate the hospital’s current image and to find ways to improve the hospital’s services. Buckner also hopes to identify healthcare needs for the hospital’s long-term planning.
“Our goal is to gain insight on what our patients and the general public thinks about EOMC,”
stated Buckner.  “We will use this information to improve our strategic plan and as an aid in our planning process.”
Oklahoma Rural Health Works is a collaborative effort of Oklahoma State University Department of Agricultural Economics, the Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service, the Oklahoma Office of Rural Health and the Area Health Education Centers. It is designed to promote and support rural economic development through local healthcare strategies. Eastern Oklahoma Medical Center is a licensed 84-bed hospital located in Poteau, Oklahoma.