Scissortail Dermatology Celebrates 5 Years

This year marks the five-year anniversary of Scissortail Dermatology, a locally owned private dermatology practice that focuses on skin cancer prevention, detection, and treatment. What started off as a dream has bloomed into a thriving private clinic with long-term patients and staff. Dr. Elise Brantley started the practice in September 2021 with the hopes of building a practice where patients feel at home and can receive customized care, and where staff can establish lifelong careers. At this five-year mark, it’s safe to say her dreams have been realized.

From the conception of opening her own clinic to seeing her first patient, a mere 3 months passed. The amount of brainstorming, planning and execution it took to make this dream a reality is truly mind blowing. “I look back on those first few months and realize I was in a focused haze. I can’t believe how much happened in such a short amount of time,” said Dr. Brantley. She was searching for a name to tie the entire idea together, that stood for small town, familiar and intimate care. Her brother inspired her to choose the name Scissortail when he noticed a flock of wooden scissortails in her kitchen. The name stuck, and the whole concept of the clinic fell into place.
Dr. Brantley decided to open her own practice when left with the choice of joining a corporate clinic. Having already been an academic dermatologist, a hospital dermatologist, and then an employee in private practice, she decided that private practice was the best fit. She quickly put together an outline for success. The most important piece of the puzzle? People.
“I knew without a doubt that I would need a team of motivated and genuine caregivers in order to make my vision become reality,” said Dr. Brantley. Her hiring motto has always been to provide a place for people to build a career, not just a job. With that in mind, she built a team of dedicated staff members, many of whom have been with her since the inception.
As the years progressed, so did the clinic. Within the first month Dr. Brantley opened a satellite clinic in south Oklahoma City, allowing her to care for an even larger population of patients, many of whom have difficulty crossing the busy city traffic. Within the first 6 months, she had 5 employees and a full schedule, filled with both new and established patients. “We hit the ground running and never looked back,” she explained.
Owning a small private practice allows doctors to have close relationships with their patients. Communication is often direct without large phone trees or virtual assistants. In addition, small practices allow continuity of care: seeing the same physician visit after visit. This helps the physician take into consideration a patient’s overall health and wellbeing when customizing an individualized care plan.
“One of the biggest benefits of being in private practice is control over my schedule. I have been able to slow down and get to know my patients. In addition, they have taught me more than I would ever have hoped to gain.”
Dr. Brantley says her patients have taught her the value of being grateful for today. “Don’t wish for previous years, because someday you’ll be looking back on today and wishing you were here again. Be thankful for your age, your health, and your situation today,” wisdom which Dr Brantley says has changed her life
Things haven’t always been as smooth as she had hoped. Working with insurance, she states, has been the most challenging hurdle. “I had no idea what I didn’t know about insurance. Every year the rules change, the cuts keep coming, and the system gets more complex than before,” said Dr. Brantley. There are several members on her staff who help with insurance navigation, but she admits that even with a team of well-trained people, it still consumes most of her time outside of seeing patients.
“What has surprised me the most is how much a practice can change in such a short amount of time.” Dr. Brantley and her staff have a vision for the future that has already been set into motion. “I have always felt part of my community by connecting with my patients, but I want them to feel the same way.”
She has started giving community lectures on skin lesions and age-related skin positivity. She writes quarterly newsletters covering hot topics and even includes personal notes. She and her team pass out sun advice (and sunscreen!) at numerous health and city festivals such as the West Village Fourth Fridays.
Dr Brantley finds it difficult to summarize the last five years in a mere sentence, as the business is still evolving and improving in so many aspects. She goes on to say, “I expected the hardest challenge would be connecting with my patients again after starting so far into my career. Lucky for me, so many of them were able to find me again and we were able to quickly pick back up where we left off.”
When asked what advice she would give her younger self before opening her practice, she replied, “without a doubt it would be to believe in yourself. If you work hard, don’t cut corners, and consistently surround yourself with genuine people who believe in the same purpose as you do, then you will succeed. Just be your true self, put out a good product you believe in, and people will follow you.”