Doctor-to-be: Oklahoma is my home that I love, but lawmakers' actions are driving me away
I’ve spent nearly my whole conscious life in Oklahoma. I was raised in Edmond, attended the University of Oklahoma in Norman for my undergraduate degree, and I am on the verge of completing medical school at OU’s Health Sciences Center. I have dear friends from Tulsa; Miami, Oklahoma; Lawton; Ada and more.
Since high school, I’ve dreamed of using my passion for learning to serve my community as an OB-GYN. However, the continued actions of the Oklahoma Legislature have led me to mournfully reconsider my future.
I will start my four years of OB-GYN training this summer in North Carolina, but I might not be able to convince myself to move back home.
The simple fact is lawmakers in Oklahoma have made it impossible for physicians to do their jobs here. The laws they have passed intrude dramatically into the doctor-patient relationship.
More importantly, they threaten women’s lives by forcing doctors to risk criminal charges if they provide necessary, medically appropriate, life-saving care to Oklahomans.
Why would I practice here, when other states will allow me to give my patients the care they require and deserve?
Oklahoma is my home that I love. Unfortunately, Oklahoma has a history of putting ideology above education and failing to give people — especially women ― information they need to control their own lives. Part of the reason I chose this field is because in high school I frequently had to research and rebut incorrect information my friends had been given about sex and reproduction.
I know I’m just one person who can’t even call herself an MD yet, but I fear and know other doctors and nurses will leave Oklahoma for states where they will be trusted and valued, rather than threatened with fines, imprisonment and loss of licenses. I cannot blame other medical professionals for not even considering Oklahoma when it comes to schooling or pursuing a career. When my loved one is sick, I want the best doctor caring for them, but we are driving the best away from our state.
Inevitably, this will all lead to worse medical care for Oklahomans. Maternal and infant mortality are already too high, and unmanaged chronic conditions will only worsen. When our Legislature passes another bill restricting best-practice medical care, I don’t just grieve for myself but for the Oklahomans our state will lose — through emigration or preventable death.
It’s time for the Legislature to end its attacks on doctors because, ultimately, the only people they hurt are Oklahomans who need competent, compassionate medical care.
I hope, in a better environment, I can return home and provide that care.
Christen Jarshaw is a fourth-year medical student at the University of Oklahoma who plans to practice obstetrics and gynecology.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OUHSC medical student reconsiders future in Oklahoma
