HEALTHCARE
Mission changes patient transfer process following Watchdog report on nurses’ complaints
Mission Hospital has updated how some patients are transferred from its emergency department to other areas of the hospital following two years of nurses’ complaints to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services and an Asheville Watchdog investigation. Mission has instructed nurses to call colleagues – a process known as called report or called hand-off – when transferring patients who have been in the emergency department for at least 12 hours, according to an internal document obtained by The Watchdog. The procedure, which will move the hospital toward conforming with industry best practices, will improve patient safety, the…
Keep readingThe Overlook with Matt Peiken interviews Watchdog editor about Mission and HCA
Local journalist Matt Peiken of the podcast The Overlook recently interviewed Asheville Watchdog executive editor Peter Lewis about his opinion piece “Is There Anything We Can Do About Mission and HCA?” Listen here:
TOURISM
Local leaders: Reduce Buncombe’s tourism marketing budget
In Colorado, occupancy taxes charged on overnight visitor stays pay for first responders, affordable housing and childcare for tourism workers. In California, occupancy taxes fund city and county budgets. On the Outer Banks, a portion goes to offsetting “the negative impacts of tourism.” None of that is allowed in Buncombe County. By law, all of the proceeds from the 6% tax on guests at hotels, vacation rentals, and bed and breakfasts goes back to tourism — two-thirds toward visitor promotion and one-third to capital projects that attract tourists. The formula feeds an ever-growing cycle of more visitors, who generate more…
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Opinion: Is there anything we can do about Mission and HCA?
So, what can we do? That’s the question we at Asheville Watchdog hear most often about the apparent decline of the once-proud Mission Health System,…
North Carolina AG sends investigative demand for 41 sets of documents from HCA and Mission Hospital
The North Carolina Department of Justice has demanded HCA Healthcare hand over 41 sets of documents related to medical care at Asheville’s Mission Hospital as…
Former Mission chief of staff: ‘I truly felt like it was a moral injury’ to work for hospital
Dr. Michael Frisch once held one of the most prominent positions at Asheville’s Mission Hospital, but today he gives the campus a wide berth. “I…
Answer Man: Small 5G cell towers coming to a neighborhood near you?
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Asheville tourism became a $3 billion-a-year behemoth, but at what cost?
Turn on the television, open a magazine, or browse online in the Southeast, Washington, D.C., Denver, or beyond, and you’re likely to see an ad…
Opinion: Reparations Commission is making progress, despite turmoil and its glacial pace
I’m not going to lie: This whole reparations process in Asheville certainly looks like a train wreck. Last week the second project director in as…
Answer Man: Can North Carolina abolish vehicle inspections? Where are they required?
Today’s round of questions, my smart-aleck replies and the real answers: Question: My question relates to North Carolina’s decision to require auto safety and emission…
50 doctors, including a former board member, publicly decry HCA’s management of Mission hospital system
Fifty doctors, including a former member of the board of directors of Mission Hospital and a former chief of staff, have written a letter condemning…
Sports Commission members wonder about composition of new board
The future of the Asheville Buncombe Regional Sports Commission remains in limbo, and at least one member of the organization’s board is concerned that the…
Answer Man: Has MAHEC’s OB-GYN training changed after Roe v. Wade decision? More interstate concrete smoothing on the way?
Today’s round of questions, my smart-aleck replies and the real answers: Question: There is a residency program in Asheville run by Mountain Area Health Education…
Following Watchdog report, Mission sale monitor says meetings to offer public comment
Six community meetings intended to allow Western North Carolinians to provide feedback on HCA Healthcare-owned Mission Hospital will have public comment segments following an Asheville…
Will rough concrete on new I-26 be permanent? Messy West Asheville lot in need of cleanup?
Today’s round of questions, my smart-aleck replies and the real answers: Question: The question I have is in regards to the pavement quality of the…
