Norman's Journey Clinic announces abrupt closure, leaving patients and employees in limbo
The abrupt closure of the Journey Clinic in Norman has left patients and employees in a state of confusion and uncertainty.
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The Norman clinic announced the closing and canceled scheduled surgeries. Many patients said they were left in the dark at the sudden announcement.
"They tell us, 'This is a life commitment. We are here for you for life,' and now they are gone," Mandy Coplen, a patient at the Journey Clinic, said. "We were counting on that help. Journey Clinic has helped hundreds of people, and for them to steal that from us."
The Journey Clinic, according to its website, is the nation's top weight loss program with specialists in medical and surgical weight loss. The clinic announced its abrupt closure due to strategic restructuring.
"Pretty gutted because I've struggled off and on for the last three years with weight loss," Elizabeth Crittenden, another patient at the clinic, said.
Norman Regional Health System announced that they will be closing the clinic within the next three months and will not be accepting new patients. But patients like Coplen said they had surgery scheduled this week.
"I automatically just felt like someone had sucker punched me. I've worked so hard, and you don’t see that. You don’t. When you see someone my size, you think, 'Oh, she needs to lose weight.' You don’t think about how much I've been through to lose the weight," Coplen said. "I know all of these people, men and women, that needed Journey Clinic. There's no other place like Journey Clinic."
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Norman Regional said that they are reaching out to affected patients. Refunds will be issued to those with a prepaid balance.
Anyone who took out loans to complete a surgery should contact their office.
"Everything was done, and now we're starting from scratch trying to find a new clinic and if anyone will take my insurance," Crittenden said. "It’s a sucky situation, but I know things can always be worse. But there's probably a reason for it, so we'll go with that."
Efforts are being made to transfer the employees to other facilities. Compensation and benefits will vary based on individual employees.
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