Dr. Richard Carter began servicing rural critical access and regional hospitals in 2003. Recognizing the declining scope and quality of care offered in rural health facilities, Dr. Carter has partnered with over 20 Oklahoma and Kansas rural health facilities to enhance the level of care offered to these rural communities. In the early years of his career, Dr. Carter worked closely with many communities to improve the image of their local hospitals. In 2007, He cofounded Global Physician Services, LLC, credited with revitalizing the hospitalist program at Shawnee Unity Medical Center, which lead to stable physician staff and improved patient satisfaction ratings.
Under Carter Professional Care, P.C., Dr. Carter has focused on rural communities by managing seven rural critical access hospitals in dire financial distress, ranging from bankruptcy to insolvency to the point they could not pay hospital staff, sometimes with only days to act before impending hospital closure. By focusing on his company’s core vision of “Renewed communities through revitalized healthcare,” Dr. Carter has put the patient first and achieved what even the nation’s largest healthcare systems have not achieved in the most fragile environments for hospitals.
Dr. Carter received his M.D. degree from the University of Oklahoma in 2002 and completed his residency in Family Practice at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center in 2005. He achieved fellowship status in Family Practice in the fall of 2016. Dr. Carter is a member of the American Medical Association, American Association of Family Practice, the Oklahoma Hospital Association, the Kansas Hospital Association, and MENSA. Dr. Carter is also a pilot and frequently visits rural hospitals by helicopter and airplane and is a member of the FAA’s Wings program and the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association. After helping rural communities, Dr. Carter’s career ambitions are in academic medicine, where he hopes to have the opportunity to assist healthcare students prepare for the practice of rural medicine.