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Oklahoma City
OKLAHOMA CITY – The first comprehensive health care center dedicated to digestive health in Oklahoma is less than two years away, as construction officially started Friday on the Kathryn Ann Meinders Digestive Health Institute on the Mercy Hospital Oklahoma City campus.
“We could not be more excited that the Meinders family’s generosity and deep commitment to health care in our community is giving Mercy an opportunity to expand our transformational services yet again,” said Bennett Geister, president of Mercy Oklahoma City Communities. “The Kathryn Ann Meinders Digestive Health Institute will help patients consolidate all of their digestive health care needs in one facility, close to all of the other top-quality and low-cost services people expect at Mercy.”
The institute is scheduled to be finished by early fall 2026. It’s the only facility of its kind within a 500-mile drive.
“I have been very blessed in my life, and I think it is important to give back. Every dollar I have invested in Mercy has had a positive impact on the lives of others and I am thankful for the great care Mercy has provided to me and my family over the years,” said Herman Meinders, who is the largest individual donor to Mercy in Oklahoma and the second-largest across all states Mercy serves.
“I know there is a great need for these services, and I believe it would make my daughter Kathy very happy to be a part of helping others,” Meinders continued. “She loved people and people loved her. I am pleased that the Kathryn Ann Meinders Digestive Health Institute will honor her memory and will help so many people.”
Kathryn Ann, known for her love of family, teaching and big adventures, died unexpectedly in 2008 at the age of 42.
Herman and Kathryn Ann were very close. She grew up watching her dad build his flowers-by-wire business and attended floral conventions with him across the world, sparking her love of adventure and travel.
Kathryn Ann attended Baylor University for undergraduate studies and earned a master’s in business administration from Oklahoma City University. She eventually discovered a love of teaching and taught at Community College of Denver.
About the Kathryn Ann Meinders Digestive Health Institute
The Kathryn Ann Meinders Digestive Health Institute will be a freestanding, two-level building at 4400 McAuley Blvd.
It’s just south of the main Mercy Hospital Oklahoma City buildings, on the east side of N Meridian Avenue at McAuley Boulevard.
The 52,000-square-foot institute, licensed through the state Health Department, will have seven procedure rooms, 21 prep/recovery rooms, a chapel, ambulatory space for gastro-intestinal health care, an inflammatory bowel disease clinic, colorectal surgery exam rooms, a hepatology clinic, a motility lab, education space and administrative offices.
With plans to hire three new physicians within the first year, Mercy’s capacity to help patients with digestive health needs will significantly expand.
“This is a game-changer for digestive health in Oklahoma,” said Mercy’s Dr. Hussein Bitar, a board-certified gastroenterologist. “It’s the only facility of its kind in our state and should be the first stop for anyone considering digestive medical care. We’re so grateful for the support of the Meinders family to help us provide care for more patients in more ways than ever before.”
Meinders and Mercy
The $7.5 million donation from the Meinders family that makes the digestive health institute possible is the latest in a long line of standard-setting philanthropic investments they’ve bestowed upon Mercy.
Herman and LaDonna Meinders have donated $19 million to Mercy in the last five years. Their recent donations have contributed to the resounding success of the Meinders NeuroScience Institute – making Mercy Hospital Oklahoma City the top-ranked neurological hospital in Oklahoma. Other notable gifts include a donation making it possible to establish the Meinders Center for Movement Disorders and a major contribution to the Love Family Women’s Center
campaign. Another donation provided a dedicated new CT scan machine in the Mercy Hospital Oklahoma City Emergency Department, helping Mercy rank No. 1 nationally in door-to-needle time for stroke patients.
“The generosity of Herman and LaDonna Meinders has been nothing short of transformational to Mercy Oklahoma City and those we serve. Their generosity will leave a living legacy for all who have been impacted by the care made possible through their enduring benevolence,” said Lori Cummins, vice president of Mercy Health Foundation Communities.
