Surgery Center of Oklahoma

My wife was in need of surgery and came across Surgery Center of Oklahoma (SCO) through an online article. An initial quote was obtained from the website and confirmed via telephone. As the pricing was very reasonable compared to local (California-​based) providers, my wife completed the online booking process and was promptly put in touch with the contract surgeon who reviewed and discussed her case in great detail. The procedure was agreed upon and my wife received final confirmation of the surgery date and price from the surgery center (or so we thought). As a result, she made her travel arrangements to Oklahoma City.
A few days before her scheduled departure, she suddenly received a phone call from SCO informing her that «upon further review» it was determined that «additional equipment» needed to be rented to perform the procedure and that she would be responsible for the additional $ 800 cost of the rental. The original price quote had been $ 1,695, so we were suddenly facing an increase of almost 50%. Apparently, no discussion had taken place between the contract surgeon and SCO about the additional equipment until this late in the game, but that had not stopped SCO from twice confirming the «final» price.
With less than a week to go and having already paid for flight and hotel, we had little choice but to come up with the extra money.
Upon arrival, my wife went to the contract surgeon’s office for the scheduled in-​person consultation on the day before the procedure. The surgeon had put himself into a scheduling conflict with a social event he wanted to attend later in the day and tried to rush through the consultation. My wife still had unanswered questions and had to get firm with him a few times insisting that he slow down and take the time necessary for a complete review, which he grudgingly did.
On the day of the surgery, the check-​in procedure was quick and efficient, and the surgery itself was completed without complications.
The post-​surgical experience, however, turned into a nightmare my wife does not ever want to relive. Her first recollection of waking up from general anesthesia was being cold and hearing some attendant yell (presumably at her) to stop kicking her blankets off. If she kept doing so, that attendant continued, he would not cover her again.
To make things worse, she was put on a taxi back to her hotel before the anesthesia had worn off and while she was still incapacitated. Not being able to communicate, she ended up being taken to the wrong hotel by the taxi driver. Once the correct hotel had eventually been located, my wife was still too weak to walk without assistance. The taxi driver and hotel staff were kind enough to carry (!) her upstairs to her room where she continued to be unable to walk for another two hours. Anyone with less than good intentions would have been able to victimize her without resistance.
Shockingly, the discharging nurse had given my wife a perfect score on the discharge report for her ability to move her extremities as well as being «fully awake and oriented» at the time of leaving SCO. In light of the fact that my wife has no recollection of even asking for a taxi nor was able to move on her own power, the discharge report would seem to be either outright false or the result of either incompetence or negligence.
In closing, Surgery Center of Oklahoma certainly fulfilled its promise to complete the surgical procedure successfully and a deeply discounted price. However, the unacceptable last-​minute increase of a «confirmed» price as well as the unsafe discharge process have left a bad aftertaste. This may be an isolated incident, but based on the experience made I would urge prospective future patients to insist on getting a final quote in writing (via letter or fax) before committing to travel and make all arrangements for safe post-​surgical pickup in advance.

Absolutely perfect experience. My Mom needed a hysterectomy and after calling, they set us up with a Doctor (who was amazing), answered all our questions, and were so kind. Mom’s experience was as perfect as it gets. Great communication, kind and efficient nurses, and professional staff, not to mention a complication free surgery. Her recovery has been fast and smooth.
For those seeking self pay options due to being underinsured or uninsured, this place offers «menu pricing» upfront. We paid what we were quoted and no more. Highly recommend!
That being said, it is a surgery center, not a hospital. If you are going to travel there for a surgery, I recommend having someone go with you. The center is very professional but their facility is only for day surgeries and can only accommodate one overnight patient at a time (the overnight nursing care was included in the price). My mom would not have been able to travel from the surgery center to the hotel alone nor been coherent enough to make decisions. This is not a criticism of the center, just a common sense observation. They were very clear about this upon making our appointments.
Upfront price quoted covered everything and was $ 10,000 less than the hospital:
Doctor fee
anesthesiologist
day nurse
night nurse
overnight private room
facility
surgery
pain meds
pre op appoinment
follow up appointment
*plus the doctor involved gave me his cell number. He called me back immediately when I had questions to begin with and called numerous times to check up on her after the procedure.