The Dr. Rodney L. Huey Memorial Champion of Oklahoma Health Award was named in memory of Dr. Rodney Huey Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Oklahoma's first physician president. His name was added to the award in 2008. Huey passed away in December 2007.

Tulsa County Recycled Medication Program, Tulsa

The Tulsa County Recycled Medication Program was named the Community Health Champion and recipient of the 2009 Dr. Rodney L. Huey Memorial Champion of Oklahoma Health award, the highest honor of the Champions of Health awards.

The Recycled Medication Program serves as a model for the public-private volunteer physician partnership. The program is produced with the aid of the Tulsa County Social Services, Tulsa County Medical Society, 27 retired volunteer physicians and the Tulsa County Pharmacy. This is the first program in the nation to legally "recycle" unused prescription drugs from long-term care facilities to charity clinics.

Stanley F. Hupfeld, FACHE, INTEGRIS Health , Oklahoma City

Stanley Hupfeld created the Community Services Department at INTEGRIS Health in 1992 with the goal of providing programs and services to address community needs. Among those community initiatives in Hupfeld’s vision are the Oklahoma Fit Kids Coalition and the Western Village Academy.

Tobacco Free Cleveland County Coalition/Communities of Excellence Tobacco Prevention Program, Norman

The Communities of Excellence Tobacco Prevention Program is a comprehensive tobacco control program targeting Cleveland County, the largest county in Oklahoma. Since 2004, the program has focused on population-based and targeted tobacco control interventions, supported by the efforts of the Tobacco Free Cleveland County coalition, a tobacco sub-committee of Cleveland County Turning Point.

Crossings Community Clinic , Oklahoma City

Crossings Community Clinic, housed in the Crossings Community Center, offers medical care, dentistry, eye care and counseling services to the uninsured in the Oklahoma City area. The volunteer base includes registered nurses, residents, doctors, dentists, nurse practitioners, pharmacists, dental hygienists, mental health personnel and substance abuse professionals.

Restorative Program for the Uninsured, Dentists for the Elderly and Disabled in Need of Treatment (D-DENT) , Oklahoma City

D-DENT works to improve the oral health, thus overall health, of low-income Oklahomans by providing complete restorative dental care to the uninsured across the state. Patients include those who do not qualify for Medicaid or could simply could not afford the cost of dental care. Dentists donate time and see clients in their own offices while D-DENT covers all laboratory fees.

George Beilke, Tulsa Visiting Nurse Association , Tulsa

George Beilke is the creator of the Visiting Nurse Program, which provides skilled nursing home health services to the working poor and uninsured in the Tulsa area. This program is Oklahoma’s only freestanding non-profit home health agency and has provided more than 224,000 visits since inception in 1984.

James R. Pletcher, D.O., Miami

Dr. James Pletcher is a psychiatrist and chief of staff for INTEGRIS Baptist Regional Health Center in Miami, Oklahoma. He also serves as medical director at Betty Ann Nursing Center in Grove, Oklahoma. Pletcher's contributions to the community go far beyond his office walls - he regularly travels to towns in southeastern Kansas and northeastern Oklahoma, treating rural residents with mental illnesses. Diseases such as Alzheimer's and dementia require special attention, as hospitalizations can be particularly traumatic to those patients. Pletcher meets with patients in smaller towns to keep their medication adjusted to avoid such avoidable hospitalizations.

ADvantage Program , Oklahoma Department of Human Services, Aging Services Division, Oklahoma City

The ADvantage Program was created in 1994 as a home and community-based Medicaid waiver to help Oklahomans remain in their homes and avoid nursing home placement. The program was developed through partnerships with public and private citizens, with the belief that elders and adults with disabilities would benefit from the option of remaining in their own homes, rather than long-term care facilities. Administered by the Aging Services Division of the Oklahoma Department of Human Services, the ADvantage Program offers a variety of services including case management, personal care, skilled nursing, prescriptions, specialized medical equipment and supplies, environmental modifications and other services.

Pendleton Woods, Epilepsy Association of Oklahoma , Oklahoma City

Pendleton Woods is an officer of two health related organizations and president of three. As a prisoner of war in WWII, Woods developed a strong devotion to helping people with health needs. He was honored as the nation’s most outstanding former POW, based on health-related public service.

He has donated approximately 7,000 hours of volunteer service to patients at the Veterans Administration hospital in Oklahoma City and received the Presidential Volunteer Service Award for his contributions of time and service to ailing veterans.

Woods serves as an officer of the Oklahoma County Senior Nutrition Development Foundation, which brings meals to handicapped seniors in need. In addition, he helped to form the Epilepsy Association of Oklahoma, and served on the Oklahoma Developmental Disabilities Counsel.

Oklahoma State University (OSU) Seretean Wellness Center , Stillwater

Seretean Wellness Center has a vision to make OSU the healthiest campus in America by providing a variety of health and wellness programs to its faculty and staff. The center's mission is to help people achieve a balance of physical and mental health. They offer an employee health clinic for university employees and spouses, providing physical exams and treatment of minor illnesses. The center also provides wellness screenings, smoking cessation programs, wellness seminars, an onsite fitness center, massage therapy, nutrition services and other programs.

Well@Work, Norman Regional Health System , Norman

Norman Regional Health System developed the 44-week "Well@Work" challenge, which matches participants with their own wellness coach. A free cholesterol screening is conducted at the start and end of the challenge to accurately measure results. The challenge focuses on exercise, nutrition and prevention, rewarding employees with cash and prizes for completing certain tasks and exercising.

Body Language, Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group , Tulsa

Dollar Thrifty’s wellness program is a corporate health initiative launched in March 2004 to empower employees to accept personal responsibility for their health and wellbeing. Dollar Thrifty provides a variety of resources and programs to facilitate modifications in health behavior to positively impact the health of employee while reducing health care costs for employees.

YouFirst, First United Bank , Durant

YouFirst is First United Bank's comprehensive wellness program, professionally managed by an on-site director from the Cooper Aerobics Center. The program offers multiple resources and tools to improve employee wellness and quality of life as a result of the bank's mission "Banking on Healthier People."

The Margaret Hudson Program , Tulsa

The Margaret Hudson Program was founded in 1968 in honor of Dr. Margaret Hudson, a strong advocate of helping teen mothers complete high school by providing medical care and social support needed to ensure healthy babies and competent parents. The program educates pregnant and parenting teens and their families on how to be healthy, self-sufficient, contributing members of the community.

Be Wise Immunize, Rotary Clubs, Sapulpa

Tulsa area Rotary Clubs have championed child health for more than 20 years through the efforts of the Be Wise Immunize project. The Rotary Club teamed with the Tulsa City-County Health Department to develop a plan to raise children’s immunization coverage rates in 1988. The Tulsa area Rotary Clubs are involved in year round immunization activities through active partnership with the Tulsa Area Immunization Coalition (TAIC).

Robert Block, M.D., FAAP, University of Oklahoma (OU) School of Community Medicine , Tulsa

For more than 35 years as a faculty member in the OU School of Medicine, Dr. Robert Block has made it his life's calling to make a difference in the lives of children suffering from child abuse.

He serves as chair of the sub board of Child Abuse Pediatrics that led to the creation of a subspecialty certification in Child Abuse Pediatrics through the American Academy of Pediatrics. Approximately 200 physicians are expected to sit for the first board examination in child abuse pediatrics.

Block also has taken an active role in the creation of the Justice Center, Child Abuse Network and OU School of Community Medicine pediatric programs.