(Editor’s note: This funded content piece appears courtesy of Dr. Barry Amos, an Oklahoma City dentist who advertises on NonDoc and formerly served as Remote Area Medical’s lead Oklahoma dentist for past events in 2010, 2012 and 2014. During that time, NonDoc editor in chief William W. Savage III served as president of the non-profit’s Oklahoma operations.)
The public can receive free dental, vision and general medical care Saturday, June 2, and Sunday, June 3, on the campus of Southeastern Oklahoma State University in Durant during Remote Area Medical’s sixth event in the Sooner State.
Based in Knoxville, Tennessee, Remote Area Medical (RAM) operates free clinics across the United States and around the world, providing high-quality care to tens of thousands of patients without asking questions about income, insurance or immigration status.
Patients will line up hours before the doors to Bloomer Sullivan Arena even open, seeking free dental care (cleanings, fillings or extractions) and free vision care (eye exams and prescription glasses made on site).
Because hundreds of patients are expected to receive care, numbers will be handed out starting at 3 a.m. each morning. These numbers will determine when patients may enter the doors. Doors will open at 6 a.m., and all minors must be accompanied by an adult.
Patients are expected to arrive from hundreds of miles away owing to the valuable care being provided. The U.S. Public Health Service is volunteering with RAM to help make the event possible, and Stacie Pace of the Rural Health Network of Oklahoma has been coordinating at the local level.
“We’re honored to come back to Durant and serve the community,” said RAM chief operating officer Chris Hall. “We look forward to seeing as many patients as possible over the next few days.”
For more information about the event, visit RAMUSA.org.
Details on the free health care weekend
- Dental: Cleanings, fillings, extractions
- Vision: Eye exams, prescription glasses likely made on site
- Medical: Encounter with physician
- When: June 2 and 3
- Where: Bloomer Sullivan Arena, 130 Magnolia Ave., Durant, Oklahoma
- Who: Open to the public; no income, insurance or immigration questions asked.
- How: Numbers given out beginning at 3 a.m., doors open at 6 a.m.
This marks the third year in a row that Remote Area Medical has provided free care to patients in southeastern Oklahoma.
