Yancey County

Steve North and Amanda Martin of the Center for Rural Health Innovation, which administers the Spruce Pine-based MY Health-e-Schools program.

School-based health centers fill rural provider vacuum

November 17, 2020 by Melba Newsome

School-based health centers fill rural provider vacuum - North Carolina Health News

Making healthcare available to students, faculty and staff on campus is vital to well-being in rural areas.

By Melba Newsome Growing up in a small town in central Wisconsin, many of Steve North’s relatives and friends assumed he would follow his father into medicine but North had other ideas. He earned a liberal arts degree at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1993 but, instead of applying for medical school, he applied for […]

A field scientist drags a cloth across the ground to gather ticks

Ticks continue creeping southward in North Carolina

August 5, 2020 by Greg Barnes

Ticks continue creeping southward in North Carolina - North Carolina Health News

The coronavirus pandemic may have slowed reporting of tick-borne diseases in the state, but the insects are more prevalent than ever and are heading south, some carrying relatively new diseases.

By Greg Barnes Alexis Barbarin isn’t sure why North Carolina is reporting fewer cases of tick-borne diseases this year. Normally, by this time, hundreds of cases would have been reported, said Barbarin, the state’s public health entomologist, whose job it is to track diseases transmitted by insects. Instead, she said, only 76 confirmed and probable […]

The Appalachian Mountains near the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina may benefit from the ARC's recovery ecosystem model. The area has a quickly growing outbreak of COVID-19

COVID-19 in western NC: Just the tip of the iceberg

April 13, 2020 by Melba Newsome

COVID-19 in western NC: Just the tip of the iceberg - North Carolina Health News

The number of COVID-19 cases in WNC is relatively low compared to the more populous areas in the state. But people on the front lines see a worrying trend that indicates it’s only a matter of time.

By Melba Newsome If you ask Bryan Hodge about the number of diagnosed coronavirus cases in western North Carolina, he can rattle off the exact number in each of 16 counties. He readily admits that, in addition to being obsessed with tracking the information, he also gets regular updates from his wife. Hodge is director […]

shows hospital building that's under construction

Where is Mission Health’s independent monitor?

October 29, 2019 by Carolina Public Press

Where is Mission Health’s independent monitor? - North Carolina Health News

A state-mandated independent monitor to ensure that any changes implemented by Mission purchaser HCA comply with terms of sale the state stipulated has not yet been announced.

By Neil Cotiaux Carolina Public Press The mandate for an independent monitor was the kind of announcement that many residents of Western North Carolina wanted to hear. On Jan. 16, N.C. Attorney General Josh Stein announced that Tennessee-based HCA Healthcare had agreed to a checklist of legal requirements to protect the public as part of […]

Seniors experiencing food insecurity eat at a church supper.

Elderly face high rates of food insecurity in NC mountain counties

September 27, 2019 by Carolina Public Press

Elderly face high rates of food insecurity in NC mountain counties - North Carolina Health News

Insufficient benefits and soaring medical expenses intensify food insecurity for seniors in Yancey, Mitchell and Avery counties.

By Karrigan Monk Carolina Public Press An elderly Mitchell County woman survived only because maggots in her leg were eating the dead flesh and preventing infection. At the time, she was living in a run-down home with no electricity or running water and little to no food. She could not afford these things or medical […]

New dollars target opioid misuse, workforce revitalization in WNC

September 11, 2019 by Liora Engel-Smith

New dollars target opioid misuse, workforce revitalization in WNC - North Carolina Health News

Twenty-nine western North Carolina counties could benefit from a new Appalachian Regional Commission initiative that will invest in workforce training and treatment options for people with addiction.

By Liora Engel-Smith Targeting some of the epicenters of the national opioid epidemic, the Appalachian Regional Commission announced a plan to revitalize the workforce in communities ravaged by addiction. The agency, whose mandate is to promote economic prosperity in 420 counties in 13 states, including North Carolina, outlined a plan to bolster and link programs […]

long distance landscape photo of mountains receding into the distance.

Mission Hospital purchase drives change for multiple local health foundations in WNC

August 21, 2019 by Carolina Public Press

Mission Hospital purchase drives change for multiple local health foundations in WNC - North Carolina Health News

A group of western hospital foundations, faced with a changed financial and legal landscape, double down on addressing social determinants of health problems in their communities.

By Neil Cotiaux Carolina Public Press When HCA Healthcare purchased nonprofit Mission Health, the rules of charitable giving in communities across Western North Carolina changed. With a for-profit owner running medical facilities, the foundations that raised funds from donors to support the local hospitals that had become part of Mission Health over time could no […]

A county by county map of US colored to show opioid death risk, including access to medication-assisted treatment

Forty-one N.C. counties classified as “high risk” in new opioid study

July 23, 2019 by Yen Duong

Forty-one N.C. counties classified as “high risk” in new opioid study - North Carolina Health News

In a national study, researchers classified 41 North Carolina counties as “opioid high-risk” with few providers of medication-assisted treatment and many opioid-related deaths.

By Yen Duong While conversations about the national opioid epidemic often focus on hardest-hit states such as Ohio, West Virginia and Kentucky, few people have analyzed county-by-county trends, where those state’s policies can make a difference. But a new study, published last month in an open-access version of the Journal of the American Medical Association, […]

photo of Mission Hospital taken from the air (or perhaps a hillside) showing the hospital complex in the distance, surrounded by mountains, trees

Rural Leaders, Residents Have Questions About Mission-HCA Deal

November 26, 2018 by Mark Tosczak

Rural Leaders, Residents Have Questions About Mission-HCA Deal - North Carolina Health News

Western NC elected officials and residents are asking questions about the pending purchase of Mission and the board of a new foundation the sale would fund.

By Mark Tosczak With reporting contributed by Jacob Biba Though it’s been more than two months since Mission Health announced it had reached final terms to sell itself to for-profit hospital operator HCA Healthcare, N.C. Attorney General Josh Stein’s office is still waiting for information from the two organizations. Under state law, Stein’s office can […]

18 westernmost counties of North Carolina, each with population numbers noted

Dogwood Health Trust Will Face Challenges Serving Diverse Western N.C. Counties

August 31, 2018 by Mark Tosczak

Dogwood Health Trust Will Face Challenges Serving Diverse Western N.C. Counties - North Carolina Health News

Experts say the foundation will have to be careful and strategic to serve prosperous Asheville along with struggling rural communities.

By Mark Tosczak If all goes as planned, a newly formed foundation, the Dogwood Health Trust, will receive the proceeds of Mission Health’s sale to for-profit hospital operator HCA sometime later this year or in early 2019. That money, as much as $2 billion, will be used to fund $50 million to $100 million in […]

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