June 3

JUNE 3rd
Upon arriving to Cherokee, I was surprised by the number of nice cabins and businesses. When learning about the area in class we spoke about the high poverty levels and poor condition of housing- this was definitely evident at times but the amount of nicer homes was a bit surprising as well. I honestly did not know Cherokee was such a tourist-y town. It is filled with gift shops, museums and restaurants. 

I think the overall preservation of history in the Cherokee culture is amazing. They take great pride in teaching others about their culture and hold a high level of respect for the people who embrace their traditions. The Cherokee culture is matriarchal. I found this fact very interesting because this is so unlike any other culture. I like that Cherokee Indians have a long history of respecting women and ensuring that all people are treated equal. Women worked the field but also owned the crops and were in charge of keeping or trading them. Women in the Cherokee culture have influenced a huge amount of their history and take great responsibility in keeping their independence.

 Today we were also able to tour the Swain County Hospital. I was looking forward to this because I had never seen a rural hospital and expected it to be much different than Methodist. Services at Swain County Hospital include acute care (in some cases), rehabilitation, prompt care services and pain clinic. They are also recently obtained a grant to open a ten-bed behavioral health unit. This is an amazing opportunity because there is a great need for inpatient care for these people. The hospital also offers tele health for patients when needed, such as a psychiatrist when a behavioral health patient is in the ED. There are workforce shortages in every community; however, Swain County Hospital suffers from a different type of workforce shortages. They have a high employee retainment however when one person calls in it is detrimental for the entire hospital. They typically have five nurses for the entire hospital and 1-2 CNAs. The nurse on the medsurg floor said many employees have stayed the night at the hospital during bad weather because they knew they would be able to make the 1 hour+ drive home and back safely. These are such simple things people take for granted in the Peoria area. I have never thought about staying at the hospital in fear of my safety driving to or from work. Swain County hospital also offers a grant for nursing student who sign a two-year contract with their hospital. This is a great opportunity to get new nurses, put a priority on education and focus on the future. This program is also a long-term solution to trying to fix their nursing shortage and having more options for employees.

            The biggest healthcare service that is difficult to access is primary care. There are many areas of North Carolina with no healthcare at all. So, if someone has to decide between a critical access hospital and a doctor’s office the hospital will always will. These critical access hospitals are great but there is very little focus on primary care. The main goal is to treat patients and hope they will stay healthy outside. Swain County hospital, specifically, is working to lessen this burden on the community by having a prompt care service as part of their building. It offers well child checkups, adult well checkups, vaccines and lab draws.