August 27, 2015

OHCA Contacts: Jo Kilgore - (405) 522-7474,  Jennie Melendez- (405) 522-7404   

OHCA employee selected as top 100 nurses for 2015

OKLAHOMA CITY – A registered nurse employed by the Oklahoma Health Care Authority (OHCA), Cindi Bryan, RN, was recently named a “Great 100 Nurse” for 2015 in Oklahoma.

The award “recognizes… concern of humanity … significant contribution to the profession of nursing and the mentoring of others… You exemplify all of the principles on which the Great 100 Nurses Celebration was founded,” the award letter states.

The Great 100 Nurses Celebration was founded 29 years ago in New Orleans. It has since honored thousands of nurses across Louisiana, North Carolina, Texas and recently Oklahoma.

A native of San Jose, Calif., Bryan moved to Oklahoma to attend Oklahoma Christian College, met her husband and stayed in the state to raise a family. She graduated from OSU Technical School in 1978 with an associate degree in nursing and obtained a Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 1990 from St. Mary’s of the Plains College. 

A nurse for 37 years, Bryan has worked in various areas including labor and delivery, an adolescent psychiatric unit, population care management, a pediatric telephone triage at OU Medical Center, and as a school nurse and a Tissue Donor Coordinator. 

“The Oklahoma Health Care Authority is proud of Cindi and her contributions to our agency, members and the nursing profession. Her dedication and passion for nursing are a great example to us all,” said OHCA Chief Executive Officer Nico Gomez.

Employed by the OHCA since August 2009, Bryan started as an Exceptional Needs Coordinator then moved into a position with the Health Management Program, which manages the care for SoonerCare members with chronic conditions. During her tenure with the agency, she learned about and has become a champion for motivational interviewing (MI).

“The ‘Spirit’ of MI really resonated with me and I fell in love with it. The ‘Spirit’ of MI consists of partnering with patients, accepting the patient’s inherent worth and respecting their autonomy to change or not. Also, its showing compassion by putting the patient’s needs before my own and evoking for the patient their own reasons to change,” Bryan said.

In an effort to develop MI proficiency, she has pursued and earned a Chronic Care Professional Certification from Health Sciences Institute and obtained Registered Health Coach III certification. She became a member of the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers in 2014. 

Bryan will be recognized during an award celebration at the Hard Rock Hotel in Tulsa on September 30.

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Oklahoma’s Medicaid program, known as SoonerCare, is administered by the Oklahoma Health Care Authority (OHCA). SoonerCare works to improve the health outcomes of Oklahomans by ensuring that medically necessary benefits and services are responsive to the health care needs of our members. Qualifying Oklahomans include certain low-income children, seniors, the disabled, those being treated for breast or cervical cancer and those seeking family planning services. Insure Oklahoma assists qualifying adults and small business employees in obtaining health care coverage for themselves and their families. OHCA strives to educate and engage our current 829,561 members regarding personal responsibilities for their health services utilization, behaviors, and outcomes in partnership with a state-wide network of 43,652 providers. For more information, visit www.okhca.org.