As used in the Oklahoma Osteopathic Medicine Act:

1. 1. “Board” means the State Board of Osteopathic Examiners;
2. 2. “Emergency” means an event, complaint, or issue that arises in which there is an immediate need for public protection as it relates to either specific individualized patient harm or an appreciable threat to the general public supported by corroborating evidence;
3. 3. “Emergency suspension” means an immediate temporary nullification of a Board-issued license by the executive director in accordance with the Oklahoma Osteopathic Medicine Act;
4. 4. “Incompetence” means the physician’s practice falls below the applicable standard of care without proof of harm or damages;
5. 5. “Malpractice” means the physician has a duty to exercise a standard of care and has deviated from the applicable standard of care which results in either a loss of chance or some appreciable increased risk in the potential for harm or exposure to harm;
6. 6. “Medical negligence” means the physician has a duty to exercise a standard of care and has breached that duty by failing to exercise the applicable standard of care, and those actions caused harm to the patient;
7. 7. “Osteopathic medicine” means a patient-centered system of health care founded by Andrew Taylor Still, M.D., D.O., and based on the theory that the body is capable of making its own remedies against disease and other toxic conditions when it is in a normal structural relationship and has favorable environmental conditions and adequate nutrition. Osteopathic medicine emphasizes prevention and wellness and utilizes generally accepted physical, pharmacological and surgical methods of diagnosis and therapy while placing strong emphasis on the importance of body mechanics and manipulative methods to detect and correct faulty structure and function;
8. 8. “Osteopathic physician” means a person who is licensed to practice osteopathic medicine in this state; and

9. 9. “School of osteopathic medicine” or “college of osteopathic medicine” means a legally chartered school or college accredited by the Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation requiring:

   1. a. for admission to its courses of study, a preliminary education equal to the requirements established by the American Osteopathic Association, and
   2. b. for granting the D.O. degree, Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine, actual attendance at such osteopathic school or college and demonstration of successful completion of the curriculum and recommendation for graduation.

Laws 1921, SB 151, c. 30, p. 41, § 1; Amended by Laws 1983, SB 142, c. 152, § 1, emerg. eff. May 26, 1983; Amended by Laws 1993, HB 1323, c. 230, § 2, emerg. eff. July 1, 1993; Amended by Laws 2025, SB 929, c. 168, § 1, emerg. eff. May 13, 2025 (superseded document available); Amended by Laws 2026, SB 1984, c. 230, § 1, eff. November 1, 2026 (superseded document available).