Afraid of Tight Spaces?

The staff of Advance Imaging focuses on calming the fears of patients undergoing MRI.

Peggy Trease (standing) and Barbara Ginn, in the room where Barbara examines the MRI images and talks the ­patients through the procedure on a microphone.

When Claremore Mayor Mickey Perry needed an MRI recently, he experienced a bit more than the usual anxiety. “Mickey is claustrophobic,” says Peggy Trease, business development manager at Advance Imaging in Claremore. According to Peggy, Mickey’s fear of MRI is not uncommon. “It’s more than just a fear of closed spaces,” she says. “It’s the fear of the unknown.”

    Barbara Ginn, Advance Imaging’s MRI technologist, stepped in to calm him, allaying Mickey’s fears by talking him through each step of the procedure. “Barbara communicates with patients like Mickey ­constantly, coaching and coaxing them along, giving timelines on each study,” Peggy relates. “Like so many, Mickey said afterwards that he couldn’t have made it through without Barbara – and that before he knew what happened, it was over.”

    Mickey Perry’s testimonial, along with others, is available at the Advance Imaging website, www.aiclaremore.com. These stories show the results of a common thread that runs through the entire staff at Advance Imaging: a commitment to ­personal one-on-one service and to the Rogers County area. “Our philosophy is to treat every patient who comes in here as if they are family,” says Peggy, who has lived in the Claremore area for 30 years. In fact, she loves her hometown so much that when her previous employer moved from Claremore to Tulsa, she only remained with them for a while before applying for her current position with Advance Imaging. “It wasn’t that I didn’t like the other company,” she says. “But it was a quality of life issue – I wanted to be a part of my community again.”

    And a part of the community she certainly is, serving on the Rogers County United Way Board of Directors and the Rogers, Mayes and Wagoner County American Red Cross Board of Directors. She is a recently appointed Noon Rotary Member and assists with several other community organization-sponsored events, including Safenet Services’ upcoming Festival of Trees on November 30. Peggy is encouraged by Advance Imaging Director Bob Fair to continue such community involvement. Bob, a resident of Oologah, is actively involved in Rogers County community ­pursuits, serving on the Safenet Board of Directors and the Chamber of Commerce Committee for the 2013 Outdoor Sporting Expo, as well as coaching 5th grade football in Catoosa. All staff members at Advance Imaging list various community involvements. “We’re committed to this ­community,” says Peggy. “We’re not going anywhere.”

    Because she loves her ­community so much, Peggy is excited that Advance Imaging is providing quality medical procedure choices for Claremore and its surrounding area. She notes that with the current insurance system in health care, people often go where their physician sends them without question, and she wants to remind them that they truly do have a choice. This is especially important for people who have difficulty ­traveling, such as the elderly, and who do not want to make the long, stressful trip into another town. “You can be your own health care advocate,” Peggy says. “You can choose – and it’s good to know you have this choice right here in Claremore.” For more information on ­services and the caring, qualified staff that ­provides them, visit www.aiclaremore.com. 

For more information, contact

Advance Imaging

www.aiclaremore.com