American Indian Report - September/October 2008 - (Page 20)

H E A LT H Cherokee Takes Big Step Toward Health Care Vision By Michelle Tirado Come Oct. 1, the W.W. Hastings Indian Hospital in Tahlequah, Okla., will be operated by the Cherokee Nation. While specific plans have not been hammered out yet, the thousands of Native people who rely on the facility’s medical services can expect positive changes. W.W. Hastings, opened since 1984, is a 58-bed hospital offering a range of services, including specialized services such as dentistry, internal medicine, intensive care, mental health and podiatry. It employs about 600 and serves well over 100,000 Native people in a 4,300-squaremile area. There are a few reasons why the Cherokee wanted to assume operations. One of them is, under the control of the Indian Health Service, there were no plans to expand the facility, and more space is needed. The hospital’s patient load in 2007 was 244,000, more than four times what the facility was built to accommodate. In June 2008, according to the tribe, 3,923 women were on a waiting list for preventative health services and exams. A study conducted by the IHS in 1997 showed that it needed 263,000 square feet to handle current demand, nearly double its size. A fourth, maybe more, of the hospital’s space is being utilized for non-medical purposes. Patient care space, like exam rooms, became storage space after the original storage facility burned down a few years ago. W.W. Hastings Indian Hospital. Photo courtesy of Cherokee Nation 20 September/October 2008 American Indian Report http://www.ihs.gov/facilitiesservices/areaoffices/oklahoma/hastings/index.asp http://www.cherokee.org http://www.ihs.gov/ http://www.ihs.gov/

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of American Indian Report - September/October 2008

American Indian Report - September 2008 Contents Notes from Indian Country Language Learning Gets More High-Tech Native American Music Awards Celebrates 10th Anniversary Hoop Dancing's Best to Compete for World Champ Title in Phoenix Congress: Activity on the Hill Device Monitors Sobriety for Pueblo Planning for Economic Development Negotiated Rulemaking to Impact NAHASDA�Reauthorization Cherokee Takes Big Step Toward Health Care Vision Preparing a Vision for the Future Grants: NAHMI - Strengthening Native American Families Blogroll

American Indian Report - September/October 2008

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