The Oklahoma Foundation for Consumer & Patient Rights is now OKWatchdog.

As the state's leading voice for consumers and patients, we think the new name more clearly reflects our purpose.

We intend to be Oklahomans' eyes, ears and conscience at the Capitol, in communities and in the public forum. What makes us unique is that we are focused on Oklahoma. Ordinary Oklahomans need a voice. Our mission is to give them one.

The name isn't the only thing to change.

Our action-oriented Web site includes a large collection of consumer information and research and provides simple ways to get involved. We also have a companion site for cell phones and other mobile devices.

Most of us don't have the time or knowledge to focus on issues that could impact our well-being. OKWatchdog will continue to provide Oklahoma-specific resources to help people take charge of their lives.

OKWatchdog appears on popular social networking sites and nonprofit portals. We have profiles on Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, Change.org, Idealist.org, YouTube and Twitter.

With our new name, user-friendly Web site and social networking presence, we intend for OKWatchdog to be a one-stop shop for information on abusive insurance companies, identity theft and everything in between.

Visitors to www.okwatchdog.org can find out how powerful forces seek to cut ordinary Oklahomans out of decisions that affect them and learn how to fight back. They can research topics ranging from automobile safety to the five-year anniversary of lawsuit reform in Texas. They can write letters to the editor and contact their legislators, all with the click of a mouse.

OKWatchdog continues the evolution of consumer advocacy in the state. We began in 2005 as the Oklahoma Center for Consumer & Patient Safety. We became the Oklahoma Foundation for Consumer & Patient Rights last summer.

Our accomplishments include:

• Spotlighting legislators' support for consumer and patient safety during the 2007 and 2008 sessions
• Drawing attention to nursing homes' reckless practice of not carrying insurance
• Issuing regular white papers, reports and alerts on issues of importance to Oklahomans
• Mobilizing opponents of deep cuts to public services from the Taxpayer Bill of Rights
• Offering an alternative viewpoint to the propaganda of Big Insurance, corporate CEOs and those they control

Hospital patient advocacy continues to be a major initiative for OKWatchdog. According to a landmark 1999 report from the Institute of Medicine, 98,000 hospitalized Americans die each year and 1 million more are injured due to preventable medical errors.

Other focus areas include identity theft, protection of senior citizens and product safety.