Ashville Adventures

June 6, 2019

Ashville Adventures

We spent the day in Ashville touring Mission Hospital and shopping downtown. We had plans of white water rafting but unfortunately we were cut short on time. So some of the group came back to the cabin and relaxed for the rest of the night while a few others hiked to Clemon's Dome. I was also able to experience the genuine care of the staff at the hospital, and of my instructor today when an issue came about during our tour. Everyone was very tentative and genuine in their concerns. So thank you to the staff and Amy for not letting me pass out in the middle of the emergency room! (Even if it would've been the most ideal place for it to happen.)

How did Mission Hospital compare to Swain County Hospital?
In the terms of the size and quality of the facility, Mission Hospital was far more advanced in their technology and size of the facility. Mission has close to 800 beds which is a pace ahead of the smaller Swain County facility. Mission's emergency department was extremely advanced in the placement and triaging of patients. They had a well thought out system that cut wait times to less than two hours. Swain had a limited number of patients that came to the facility so they also had a shorter wait time but they also were limited on the five patient facility so wait times fluctuated depending upon the census. Mission is a level two trauma center that has two trauma rooms that are advanced in the technology they use and the protocols they adhere to. For example, when a trauma comes to the facility, they have designated areas surrounding the patient bed for each discipline to stand. This creates a uniform routine for staff to follow. It also allows staff to easy recognize who is with what discipline. If I were to compare the two facilities to hospitals around our area, I would consider Swain to be comparable to Graham Hospital in Canton, where Mission Hospital would be similar to Methodist or OSF.

What is the distance people come to receive care here?
The facility is a level two trauma center. They have goals of becoming certified as a level one. This means that they receive transfers from outlying hospitals that are not able to provide adequate care. I would say patients come to this facility from all over the state and surrounding counties. The intake of patients is not limited to just locals. They are able to accommodate a larger number of patients as well as a higher acuity of patients due to the facility's size. This means they are not as limited on who comes to seek care or where they come from.

What stood out to you the most today?
I think what stood out to me the most today was the way Mission Hospital strives to advance the technology, patient satisfaction, and employee satisfaction. It was prominent that they took pride in the expansion of the facility. Before setting plans in stone, they made two trial rooms on a floor to allow staff to work out bugs before creating the whole new facility. They also stated that they heard the complaints of the staff about the size of a recently remodeled floor and took all complaints into consideration when designing the new expansion of the hospital.

The group in the lobby at Mission Hospital