Marginalizing mental health: Regional providers struggle with funding cuts

The shortcomings of America’s mental health system have once again been brought to the forefront as national news outlets report the shooters responsible for recent mass killings in Las Vegas and Texas were mentally ill.

SEE ALSO: Waynesville treatment center expands mental health services

Medical experts say there’s no real connection between individuals with mental illness and mass shootings, but the presumed link between the two reveals the real reason why the mental health system is in such dire straits — we still don’t understand enough about mental illness.

Waynesville treatment center expands mental health services

The Balsam Center in Waynesville will now be able to better meet the mental health and substance abuse needs of Haywood County residents following an extensive renovation and expansion.

Mission tightlipped about negotiations with BCBS

It’s been a month since the contract between Mission Health and Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina expired, leaving thousands of people in Western North Carolina to pay higher out-of-network prices to stay with Mission providers.

Patient counts up at Harris, Swain

Mission Hospital’s decision to let its contract with Blue Cross Blue Shield expire has resulted in increased business for Harris Regional Hospital, with patient admissions this October up about 20 percent over numbers from October 2016.

Harris opens new emergency department

A brand new emergency department at Harris Regional Hospital in Sylva received its first patients Monday, Nov. 6, marking the end of a project that’s been more than a decade in the making.

New Franklin hospital could move out to U.S. 441

Angel Medical Center has been located in downtown Franklin for 60 years, but hospital officials are looking into the possibility of building a new facility out on U.S. 441.

An alternative to opiates for pain relief

Like placing a bandage over a deep wound and hoping it will just go away, opiate painkillers are prescribed to a growing number of Americans each year. Unfortunately, these medications do not address the true cause of the pain and often lead down a dark path.

Power of self-healing: Dr. Sparks takes long-range approach to personal health

Too often patients visit Dr. Linda Sparks as a last resort.

Only after years of not being able to find any answers or relief through traditional medicine, do they turn to an alternative like naturopathic medicine. Sparks has personally seen patients completely heal themselves with naturopathic medicine, which is why she decided to change her entire career to help others see those same health benefits.

Bryson Senior Living close to completion

When Bryson Senior Living, an assisted living facility in Swain County, opens in January, a major void in the community will finally be filled.

Seven WNC counties to host Annual Stand Down

By Kurt J. Volker • Contributing writer

In cooperation with the seven Veteran Services offices in the WNC region, the Macon County Veterans Services Office will host the fourth annual Veterans Stand Down from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 5, at the Robert C. Carpenter Community Building, 1288 Georgia Road, in Franklin.

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