About Harold Hamm Diabetes Center

Committed to curing diabetes and ending the diabetes pandemic in the 21st century, OU Health Harold Hamm Diabetes Center supports comprehensive care for people and families who live with diabetes, as well as world-renowned researchers seeking a cure.

Innovative Resource for Diabetes Care & Research

Through facilities in Oklahoma City, Tulsa, affiliated sites across the state and partnerships with Native American communities, you benefit from an innovative range of services at Harold Hamm Diabetes Center, including

• Healthy eating and cooking classes
• Lifestyle intervention programs
• Summer camp for children and teens living with diabetes
• Support groups for adults

Steward of the World’s Largest Diabetes Research Prize

The Center oversees the world’s top research prize in the diabetes field, the Harold Hamm International Prize. Established in 2012, this award recognizes and promotes lasting achievements in diabetes research focused on progress toward a cure.

History of Harold Hamm Diabetes Center

Early on, the University of Oklahoma’s Health Sciences Center (OUHSC) became internationally recognized for its work in the field of diabetes, creating a unique foundation for Harold Hamm Diabetes Center to build upon.

As early as the late 1950s, OUHSC researcher Dr. Kelly West began work that led to him become the first person to systematically study the mechanisms, natural history and diagnostic criteria used to identify diabetes. Today, he is internationally regarded as the “father of diabetes epidemiology.” The most prestigious award in diabetes epidemiology, given by the American Diabetes Association, is named in his honor.

In the 1960s, Dr. Paul Kimmelstiel came to OUHSC to carry on his groundbreaking work on diabetes and kidney disease, resulting in the identification of Kimmelstiel-Wilson syndrome, a kidney condition associated with diabetes.

In 1987, Dr. James Gavin was appointed director and chief of the Section of Endocrinology, Metabolism and Hypertension, and the William K. Warren Professor for Diabetes Studies at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center in Oklahoma City. His outstanding scientific contributions led to his election to the Association of American Physicians (1992) and to the prestigious Institute of Medicine of the National Academies (1996).

In the 1990s, Dr. Kenneth Copeland joined OUHSC to greatly expand the pediatric diabetes program, which has led the way in research for prenatal and childhood causes of diabetes, as well as establishing treatment guidelines for type 2 diabetes in children.

In the 2000s, Dr. Timothy Lyons was recruited to significantly increase the focus of OUHSC’s endocrinology programs on adult diabetes research and clinical care.

More About Diabetes Center Research

Find out more about research at Harold Hamm Diabetes Center:

• Research Programs
• Research Members
• Research Facilities
• Research for Healthcare Professionals, including our annual Research Symposium and the Harold Hamm International Prize

Meet the Director

In 2019, Dr. Jacob E. (Jed) Friedman was appointed the new Director of the Harold Hamm Diabetes Center, Vice Provost for diabetes programs at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center and Chickasaw Professor of Physiology at the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine. His previous experience spans 18 years as the director of the Colorado NIH-Nutrition and Obesity Research Center (NORC) Molecular and Cellular Analytical core lab, with appointments in Pediatrics, Medicine, Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics.

Dr. Friedman has an established record of collaborative research in humans, primates and mouse models of diabetes and obesity focused on pathways for developmental programming of metabolism from mothers to infants during the first 1000 days of life. He is the past-president of the American Diabetes Association Council on Pregnancy and Diabetes, and recipient of the 2014 Norbert Freinkel Award for outstanding scientific achievement in the field of diabetes and pregnancy.

Diabetes Clinical Trials in Oklahoma City & Tulsa

You may qualify to join a clinical trial at Harold Hamm Diabetes Center in Oklahoma City, whether or not you live with diabetes. Enroll in our Volunteer Registry to receive up-to-date information on clinical trials of potential interest to you, with no obligation to participate.