(PCM+)Having the Conversation: Answers From Providers

by Stephanie Krenn | Contributing Writer

The following article appeared in the print issue of Ponca City Monthly magazine, which includes hyperlocal stories about Ponca City. Get full access to all online articles, videos, and content by becoming a paid subscriber. We offer free and paid subscription plans. Find rack locations to pick up your free print copy here, or subscribe here to get online access plus exclusive content.

Disclaimer: This article contains information from a medical professional provided solely for the content of this article. Consult with your own medical professional or healthcare provider for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.

I remember that phone call often when I drive or walk down Ponca City’s ever-growing main street. I had been in a local boutique checkout line on a Friday when Dr. Julie Strebel Hager’s office number came through my phone. My heart sank knowing that unless something was wrong, biopsy results on a Thursday afternoon should not be back until Monday. I can still hear the hesitation in her voice and feel the sense of importance when she agreed to wait on the phone as I walked to my car to speak privately. She knew my drive was too far away to ask me to drop by the office to discuss results. She had also known me since my pregnancy and the birth of my son, whom she delivered eight years prior, and that my personality needed answers the moment they were available. As difficult as that conversation must have been, she provided the answers I needed with careful consideration and compassion. Dr. Hager describes her role in a cancer diagnosis as “a voice of calm in a frenetic time where a patient’s mind and heart are all over the place. [She] explains the diagnosis and tries to decrease fear by outlining a step-by-step plan to allow for further investigation and referral for surgery and oncology.” When I got off that phone call, my world felt unstable and uncertain, but I also took comfort in her words of confidence that there were options, she had a plan to help me get started and that I was not alone.