Health Administration and Policy Alumnus & OU Medical Center COO Receives 2021 Young Alumni Professional Award

The Department of Health Administration and Policy and Office of Alumni Affairs awarded the 2021 Young Alumni Professional Award to Casey L. Woods, a 2011 MHA Alumnus. Recipients of these prestigious awards are recognized for achieving professional and personal successes, and demonstrating exemplary service to their community and/or the University.

Casey earned his MHA from the OU Hudson College of Public Health in May 2011 and has demonstrated continued growth and service to the OU Health system for more than 12 years. Following an Administrative Fellowship at Stephenson Cancer Center and OU Medical system, he has taken on increasing responsibilities. Casey now serves as the Chief Operating Officer at OU Medical Center and is an active member in the American College of Healthcare Executives.

Professionally, Casey has been an administrative operator over approximately $500M worth of projects as part of OU Health ranging from small renovation projects to large expansion projects, including the new Patient Tower and Operating Room Expansion which completed June 2021 on the University of Oklahoma Medical Center campus. Casey oversaw the entire completion of the new North Tower at the OU Medical Center, navigating the COVID-19 pandemic. The current expansion was much needed and added 144 beds and 32 operating rooms to help support the needs of patients treated at Stephenson Cancer Center, those undergoing critical and complex surgical procedures, those with trauma-related injuries and more.

Casey has been actively engaged with the department. In addition to his practical experience, he has served in an academic role, co-teaching the Capstone Seminar course in the MHA program the last several years. Through this service, he shares his considerable experience with managing projects with the MHA students. Casey has mentored HAP students for the past several years and served on the faculty search committee in 2019.

A few comments from his nomination letters:

• As a preceptor during my internship, he made my experience a priority. Even though he was swamped with projects and COVID-19 craziness, he made sure to keep an open line of communication and meet with me on a consistent basis. He also gave me challenging projects that allowed me to feel a sense of responsibility and boosted my confidence as a leader. 
• His role as a professor for the capstone course could not have been better. He made it a point to provide guidance for our project, but still encourage us to find solutions to our problem on our own. His feedback was always genuine and honest. I always appreciated how involved he was even though he was preoccupied with his primary role at OU. 
• I have recently had the opportunity to work closely with Mr. Woods as he has taken on the role of CEO of OUMC in addition to his COO role. I have watched Mr. Woods work faithfully and tirelessly under the yoke of these duel responsibilities, and I’ve been extremely impressed.
• Mr. Woods has a mind like a steel trap, rapidly absorbing minute details from seemingly endless organizational sources and combining them into thoughtful and progressive macroscopic organizational responses.
• OUMC is lucky to have such a capable and stalwart leader to guide them through their recent changes, and I can think of no one better to be receiving this award.
• Casey is a great ambassador for the HAP department and a very worthy recipient of the Young Alumni award. I am happy to call Casey an alum and a colleague.