JARI ASKINS NAMED ASSOCIATE PROVOST FOR EXTERNAL RELATIONS
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March 03, 2011
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: OU Public Affairs, (405) 325-1701
OKLAHOMA CITY – Jari Askins, an advocate for quality health care during her years in the Oklahoma Legislature and as lieutenant governor, is being appointed associate provost for external relations at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, OU President David L. Boren announced today.
“All of us in the University family are very pleased that Jari Askins has decided to join us in our effort to bring the benefits of medical research directly to more patients in our state,” Boren said. “Jari Askins is a person of great ability and energy. She will help us make sure that the outstanding medical expertise found at the OU Health Sciences Center is used to serve the entire state. In her first year, she will concentrate on informing all Oklahomans about the services available at the new Peggy and Charles Stephenson Oklahoma Cancer Center,” he said.
In assuming the new position, Askins said, “I’m pleased to be accepting a leadership role where I can continue my work to ensure the best health care for Oklahomans as I transition from elected office to a new arena of public service in which I intend to invest the rest of my career.”
Dr. Robert Mannel, director of the Cancer Center, said, “As someone whose career has focused on helping the citizens of Oklahoma, Jari Askins will be an outstanding spokesperson and advocate for the Peggy and Charles Stephenson Oklahoma Cancer Center. In her new role, Jari will bring a high level of leadership, energy, and passion to the Cancer Center as we continue to build a world-class cancer clinical and research program that will benefit all Oklahomans.”
Askins will also provide the same kind of outreach activities for other programs, such as the Harold Hamm Oklahoma Diabetes Center and the Tisdale Clinic. In addition, she will be working on ways to improve patient convenience and communication.
“We are excited to have Jari Askins join our outreach efforts because of her known advocacy and commitment to improve health care for the people of Oklahoma,” said Joseph Ferretti, senior vice president and provost for the OU Health Sciences Center. “She understands the demographics of our state’s needs, which will be an important asset for increasing all the Health Sciences Center’s efforts to serve Oklahomans.”
Askins has been an avid supporter in areas beneficial to the health care of Oklahomans from tort reform to tax credits for those purchasing supplemental health care coverage. She worked to protect tobacco settlement funds so that they would be used for the health of the state’s youth and cancer research. In addition, she advanced legislation to ensure reimbursements for primary care physicians for care they provide via telemedicine and to expand the employer/employee arrangement for insurance coverage.
Askins, an OU law alumna, has been the recipient of numerous awards and honors for her support of health care initiatives. She was presented with the Friend of Medicine Award by both the Oklahoma State Medical Association and the OU College of Medicine Alumni Association and the Friend of Oklahoma’s Children Award by the Oklahoma Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics. The Oklahoma Public Health Association named her Outstanding Legislator, and the Oklahoma Academy of Family Physicians presented it inaugural Legislator of the Year Award to her, and later recognized her with its Patient Advocate Award.
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