- Share Story
-
-
-
Healthcare professionals can practice in many settings, but not every environment enables them to flourish. If you’re seeking a fulfilling nursing job at a Tulsa hospital, consider opportunities at Ascension St. John Medical Center, one of Oklahoma’s leading healthcare facilities. As part of the Ascension health system, St. John Tulsa prioritizes its staff’s well-being, believing employees who are supported, enriched and engaged are better able to deliver safe, high-quality patient care.
Below, we explore some of St. John’s clinical specialties, plus its achievements and programs designed to support permanent and travel nurses. As you decide on the next step of your career, compare the facility’s offerings with other Tulsa hospitals and healthcare employers, and choose an employer best suited to your personal and professional ambitions.
Overview of St. John Medical Center
Established in 1926 by a Catholic congregation, the Sisters of the Sorrowful Mother, the hospital opened with 50 beds to care for patients. Almost a century later, St. John has six locations throughout northeastern Oklahoma and a team of 7,000 employees.
The main facility, St. John Medical Center in Tulsa, has 567 licensed beds. The other five locations are:
- St. John Sapulpa: 25 beds
- St. John Owasso: 36 beds
- St. John Broken Arrow: 68 beds
- St. John Jane Phillips (Bartlesville): 114 beds
- St. John Nowata: 25 beds
About Ascension
St. John Medical Center is part of Ascension Health System, a Catholic healthcare system headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. With a presence in 19 states and the District of Columbia, Ascension operates more than 2,600 care sites, including 139 hospitals. It employs a team of about 139,000 staff nationwide.
Ascension’s faith-based mission is to provide “spiritually centered, holistic care, which sustains and improves the health of individuals and communities.” It aims to provide compassionate care to all persons, including those who are vulnerable and in need. According to its website, Ascension provided $2.3 billion in care to community programs and those in poverty in its 2022 fiscal year.
Clinical Specialties at St. John Tulsa
As a general medical and surgical facility, St. John Tulsa cares for patients with a broad range of illnesses and injuries. U.S. News and World Report ranked Ascension St. John Medical Center as the No. 2 best hospital in Oklahoma and Tulsa in 2022-2023. It also ranked the facility as high-performing in the following conditions and procedures:
- Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
- Colon cancer surgery
- Diabetes
- Heart attack
- Heart failure
- Kidney failure
- Stroke
- Transcatheter aortic valve replacement
Registered nurses (RNs) can practice in more than 40 specialties, putting their clinical expertise to work in various areas, including:
- Cancer Care
- Cardiology
- Endocrinology
- Mental Health
- Neurology
- Obstetrics
- Orthopedics
- Palliative Care
- Pediatrics
- Rehabilitation
- Women’s Health
Accreditations and Accolades
The medical center is home to the St. John Heyman Stroke Center, the only Comprehensive Stroke Center certified by the Joint Commission in eastern Oklahoma. This accreditation recognizes the center as delivering the highest level of stroke care with advanced technology and specially trained staff.
The hospital’s Level II Trauma Center is the only trauma center verified by the American College of Surgeons in northeastern Oklahoma. It includes surgical suites for complex procedures and a dedicated neuro-trauma-surgical ICU. Air and ground ambulance services often bring patients to St. John Trauma Center from rural areas in Oklahoma, southern Kansas and western Arkansas.
St. John Tulsa is also renowned for its cancer program, which has received accreditation from the American College of Surgeons’ Commission on Cancer for quality care since 1949. The hospital’s multidisciplinary approach to cancer treatment draws on the expertise of surgeons, oncologists, radiologists and pathologists, providing comprehensive, specialized care.
St. John has received numerous other distinctions for outstanding patient care, including:
- 2022 Gold Performance Achievement Award, Chest Pain – MI Registry. This honor from the American College of Cardiology recognizes the hospital’s exceptional standard of care for heart attack patients.
- Age-Friendly Health System. The Institute for Healthcare Improvement recognized St. John for its high stand of care for older adults.
- Excellence in Healthcare Award. Professional Research Consultants awarded St. John’s Sleep Disorder Center a 5-star patient satisfaction award in 2020-21, placing it in the top 10% of hospitals nationally.
Benefits of Working at St. John Tulsa
While a healthcare profession can be rewarding, balancing your job and personal life is essential. St. John offers employees flexible scheduling, a minimum of 12 paid time off (PTO) days and 8 paid holidays. This flexibility and PTO give you time to care for yourself and enjoy the company of family and friends. St. John also offers parental leave to eligible employees.
Medical, vision and dental coverage is available. Health insurance premiums depend on your annual base pay. You also have the option to save on out-of-pocket expenses through health savings accounts and flexible spending accounts.
You can save for the future with the company’s retirement benefits. Ascension provides an annual matching contribution based on your earnings and years of service. You also receive disability, life and accidental death and dismemberment insurance at no cost.
St. John’s benefits also include the following:
- Employee Assistance Program
- Home and Vehicle Insurance Discounts
- Information on Managing Student Loans
- Tuition Reimbursement
- Professional Development Resources
- Transportation Tax Break
- Wellness Resources
Benefits information came from Ascension’s website on March 3, 2023. Be sure to ask your recruiter or hiring manager for current eligibility details before accepting a position.
Focus on Diversity and Equality
As a faith-based organization, St. John Tulsa emphasizes compassionate care, social justice and equality for all. This spirit of inclusiveness carries through to its diversity initiatives. Ascension aims to achieve a culture free of racism and injustice, ensuring equal access to opportunities and resources for its staff and patients.
To achieve this goal, Ascension created an internal program called ABIDE, which emphasizes the principles of Appreciation, Belonging, Inclusivity, Diversity and Equity. This framework guides the hospital’s efforts to remove healthcare disparities in the community and ensure every employee feels welcome and valued.
Building a Nursing Career at St. John Tulsa
When you accept a nursing job at St. John Medical Center, you become part of Ascension’s 50,000-strong nursing team. The health system recognizes the essential role RNs play in patient care and aims to give you the resources you need to shine. These resources might take the form of a smartphone app that makes your work more efficient, new ways to collaborate so you have a greater voice at work and opportunities to sharpen your skills so you can perform at your best.
Nursing Internship/Externship
Even if you’re still in nursing school, you can lay the groundwork for your Tulsa nursing career. A nursing internship or externship allows you to perform basic tasks in a nursing unit, such as taking vital signs, transporting patients for tests and helping with activities of daily living.
New Grad Residency
It’s exciting to shift from nursing school to clinical practice, but it can also be intimidating. St. John offers a year-long nurse residency program that helps new graduates grow into their roles as professional RNs.
Nursing Fellowship
Nursing fellowships are tailor-made for RNs who want to try a new clinical specialty. These programs provide the support and resources you need to build your skills and learn the care needs of another patient population.
Career Planning
Once you begin professional practice, you might have your sights set on a particular career goal. St. John’s career coaches help you build a realistic roadmap for landing your dream job, whether it’s at St. John or another hospital in the Ascension network.
Growing Your Career
A job can feel like drudgery when you’ve outgrown your role or no longer feel challenged. St. John aims to keep you fresh and energized by helping you acquire higher-level skills and expertise. This experience can translate into better-paying jobs and greater responsibilities. Ascension St. John nurses are encouraged to pursue specialty certifications and receive review courses, textbooks and exam reimbursement.
Continuing Education
To help you meet the requirements of your nursing license, St. John Tulsa provides free continuing education to nurses. Continuing education offerings include both in-person and online courses.
Travel Nursing Opportunities in Tulsa
Ascension also offers an in-house travel nursing program, placing nurses at Ascension healthcare facilities nationwide. The program includes tax-free stipends and benefited and non-benefited travel positions. Like elsewhere, travel nursing salaries in Tulsa are usually higher than average staff RN salaries.
Vivian’s job board featured over 500 travel nursing jobs in Tulsa at top hospitals and healthcare facilities on March 3, 2023. Travel jobs enable RNs from across the country to work and travel, taking advantage of the high demand for their skills. Living in Oklahoma and working in Tulsa provides rewarding nursing opportunities in various specialties and settings.
Hospital Location and Commute
Ascension St. John Medical Center is just a few miles southeast of downtown Tulsa. While the length of your commute depends on where you live, you’ll likely spend less time getting to and from work than many Americans. According to Sperling’s Best Places, the average commute in Tulsa is 18.4 minutes. This timeframe is shorter than the average U.S. commute time of 26.4 minutes.
Employees can take public transit to bus stops near the medical center. The hospital campus also features designated employee parking spots for those driving.
On Campus and Nearby Amenities
Several dining options are available at the hospital. Check out the offerings at the cafeteria on the second floor of the Chapman Tower, the coffee shop on the second floor of the Heyman Building and the cafe in the health club on the first floor of the Chapman Health Plaza. The menus offer a variety of hot meals, seasonal dishes, sandwiches, wraps, salads, desserts, smoothies and specialty coffees.
The hospital is also conveniently located near the Utica Square shopping mall, making it easy to run errands or meet up with friends for a meal before or after your shift.
Catholic mass is held daily at 11:30 a.m. in the medical center’s main chapel for those who wish to attend.
Contact Information
Ascension St. John Medical Center
1923 South Utica Avenue
Tulsa, OK 74104
(918) 744-3131
Feature Photo Credit: Ascension St. John Medical Center, Tulsa
