About the Campus

The Dean McGee Eye Institute (DMEI)/University of Oklahoma (OU) Department of Ophthalmology makes its home on the campus of the Oklahoma Health Center (OHC), which houses a number of organizations ranging from cutting edge biotechnology companies and research laboratories to patient care, education, government, and community support institutions. The interaction between DMEI and the other physicians, research scientists, and organizations on campus elevates the level of patient care, education, and vision research at the heart of DMEI’s mission. We are proud to be a part of the OHC campus and to work in conjunction with our OHC partners.

Oklahoma Health Center

The Oklahoma Health Center (OHC) is an epicenter of research, health care, education, technology, and community services organizations that exists nowhere else in the state of Oklahoma.

• The Oklahoma Health Center was founded in 1965 by a small group of Oklahoma City businessmen, including Dean A. McGee, Stanton L. Young, Harvey Everest, E.K. Gaylord, and Don O’Donoghue. It is patterned after the Texas Medical Center in Houston.
• This 300-acre campus is located just south of the state Capitol and east of downtown Oklahoma City, a few blocks from the heart of the city’s flourishing art, entertainment, and restaurant districts.
• These 300 acres represent a $3 billion capital investment.
• As a whole, the OHC represents the second-largest concentration of employees in Oklahoma — more than 17,500.
• A recent study showed the annual economic impact of this complex on the local community is $1.7 billion.

OU Health

OU Health – a partnership between the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center and the University Hospitals Authority & Trust – is the state’s only comprehensive academic health system and includes the state’s largest physician network with a complete range of specialty care. Two of OUMI’s three hospitals are on the OHC campus – OU Medical Center and The Children’s Hospital. DMEI/OU Department of Ophthalmology attendings and residents provide ophthalmology coverage at both facilities.

OU Medical Center

OU Medical Center is the only comprehensive academic hospital in the state. It offers the widest range of medical and surgical services in the region and serves as Oklahoma’s only Level I trauma center. Ophthalmology coverage for the emergency department and trauma center, as well as inpatient consultation, is provided by DMEI/OU Department of Ophthalmology physicians.

Oklahoma Children’s Hospital OU Health

Oklahoma Children’s Hospital OU Health is the state’s only hospital solely dedicated to the treatment of children. The children’s pediatric emergency department has 21 beds. Critically ill newborns and premature infants receive care in an 88-bed neonatal intensive care unit. The OU Children’s Physicians building houses the private practice doctors’ offices of Oklahoma Children’s Hospital medical staff, including the OUCP Eye Clinic with five 20-foot lanes and a minor procedure room staffed by DMEI/OU Department of Ophthalmology physicians.

Veterans Affairs Medical Center

The OHC campus is home to the Oklahoma City Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center and is a 169-bed facility that serves as a primary, secondary, and tertiary care center for eligible veterans in the greater Oklahoma City metropolitan area and the western two-thirds of the state, plus two counties in north central Texas. It is a regional referral center for open-heart surgery, hemodialysis, and surgical eye disease. The VA Medical Center is one of the primary surgical training sites for DMEI/OU Department of Ophthalmology residents.

University of Oklahoma Health Sciences (OUHS)

Comprising the heart of the OHC, the OUHS boasts seven professional colleges – Medicine, Nursing, Allied Health, Pharmacy, Public Health, and Graduate Studies – and serves approximately 4,000 students in more than 70 degree programs. The medical center campus also contains the Stephenson Cancer Center, outpatient facilities for adult and pediatric clinics, the Bird Medical Library, the OU Harold Hamm Diabetes Center (housing the McGee Eye Surgery Center), and research facilities used by the OU College of Medicine as well as the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation. Additionally, the Oklahoma Department of Health and OU Colleges of Pharmacy, Nursing, and Public Health are located on the campus as well. A 7-story administrative and educational building for the College of Medicine sits on the corner of S.L. Young Boulevard and N. Phillips Avenue.

Harold Hamm Diabetes Center

Located across the street from DMEI, the Harold Hamm Diabetes Center (HHDC) is among the world’s largest and most comprehensive institutions of its kind. Integrating research, clinical care, and community outreach services, the HHDC is committed to curing diabetes. DMEI collaborates with the HHDC in addressing eye disease associated with diabetes through patient care, clinical trials, and basic research. In addition, DMEI’s surgery center – the McGee Eye Surgery Center – is located on the first floor of the HHDC building.

Stephenson Cancer Center

The Stephenson Cancer Center is one of the elite cancer centers in the U.S. and the largest and most comprehensive oncology practice in Oklahoma. A leading cancer research institute, the Stephenson Cancer Center has received National Cancer Institute Designation and is awarded more than $50 million in research grants annually. DMEI/OU Department of Ophthalmology physicians collaborate with Stephenson Cancer Center physicians whenever cancer patients require ophthalmic care. Our ocular oncology and oculoplastic surgeons have strong affiliations with this center.

University of Oklahoma Research Park

The OHC is also home to the University of Oklahoma Research Park – a 27-acre, $100 million research park consisting of more than 700,000 square feet of modern biomedical laboratory and office space with a mission to grow biomedical research in Oklahoma.

Oklahoma City Innovation District

The Oklahoma Health Center is part of the Oklahoma City Innovation District, an initiative to invest in high-quality places where research institutions, health care providers, and other industry leaders concentrate their talent and connect across organizations and industries to create a culture of innovation.