William K. Warren Jr. Simulation Center

Saint Francis’ state-of-the-art medical simulation facility has a new name: The William K. Warren, Jr. Simulation Center.

Warren is a trustee and former board chairman of Saint Francis Health System. His parents, W.K. Warren, Sr. and Natalie Warren, founded the hospital in 1960.

Saint Francis leaders, educators and nursing students led a ceremony of thanks to Warren, who said he was completely surprised by the announcement.

“Seriously, this touches my heart that this has been named for me,” Warren said, reaching out to the educators and students at the center. “I’m so thrilled to be associated with you.”

“I thank you all for your hard work, your passion and for working for Saint Francis,” he said. “We are blessed by all of you.”

During the naming ceremony, Chief Nursing Officer Cindy Leathers said that in recent months the center has hosted everything from training for volunteer cuddlers for the neonatal intensive care unit to extracorporeal membrane oxygenation training for members of the Saint Francis Heart and Vascular Institute.

“Mr. Warren, and to the entire Warren family, we want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts because your support for this simulation center and our academic partnerships is putting Saint Francis at the forefront of technology and education,” Leathers said.

“This simulation center truly has the potential to change the health of northeastern Oklahoma and help us attract and retain some of the best staff in the nation.”

The 7,000-square-foot William K. Warren, Jr. Simulation Center features four rooms with high-tech manikins that mimic patients ranging from small children to adults. The manikins not only display symptoms for students, but also move, talk and cry out.

“This is as close as you can get to being up there on the floor as I can imagine,” Rogers State University nursing student Michael Lamont said.