Erlanger Western Carolina Hospital | |
---|---|
Erlanger Health System [1] | |
Geography | |
Location | Murphy, Cherokee County, North Carolina, United States |
Organization | |
Funding | Non-profit hospital |
Type | General |
Services | |
Emergency department | Yes |
Beds | 57 |
Helipad | Yes |
History | |
Opened | 1979 |
Links | |
Website | http://www.erlanger.org/murphymedical |
Lists | Hospitals in North Carolina |
Erlanger Western Carolina Hospital is a hospital located in Murphy, North Carolina certified by the United States Department of Health and Human Services. It is the only hospital in the state west of Bryson City and Franklin. The hospital is licensed for 191 beds. Of the 191 beds, 120 are nursing home beds, 57 are general beds, and 14 are beds for patients with Alzheimer's disease. [2] [3]
It is affiliated with Erlanger Health System, based in Chattanooga, TN. After acquiring the hospital in 2018, Erlanger renamed the facility from its original name "Murphy Medical Center" to "Erlanger Western Carolina Hospital."
Much hospital quality information exists in the HealthGrades website concerning this hospital. HealthGrades shows twelve quality indicators; these are rated as one star, three stars and five stars. This hospital scored as follows:
The hospital was rated on nine patient-safety indicators. Murphy Medical Center received the following ratings:
The Nursing Home Rating website has quality information about the nursing home part of Erlanger Murphy Medical Center. Its overall rating was four of five possible stars, with five stars being the best possible rating. This information was generated in 2013. [5]
Cherokee County’s first medical institution was Petrie Hospital, founded in November 1933 by Dr. R.W. Petrie, an eye, ear, nose, and throat specialist. The hospital was a two-story white brick building atop a hill on Peachtree Street in downtown Murphy. It started with four registered nurses and a capacity of 21 patients. [6] The Sisters of Providence of Holyoke came to Murphy in 1956 to manage Petrie Hospital and renamed it Providence Hospital. [7] The 22-bed Murphy General Hospital was built by Dr. F. V. Taylor in 1941 and closed in July 1969 due to insufficient staff and property. [8] [9] In 1956, a 30-bed non-profit regional hospital named District Memorial was constructed in nearby Andrews. [10] [8] Citing uncollected payments, District Memorial declared bankruptcy in 2000. [11] Murphy Medical acquired District Memorial's assets in 2002 before District Memorial closed in June 2003, and was demolished in late 2008. [12] [13]
In January 1974 the Murphy Town Council approved spending $4,000 on a study to see whether constructing a new hospital was feasible. [14] Mountain Health Services of Blairsville, Georgia, recommended the construction of a new $5.5 million medical center. Following this study, Providence Hospital closed in 1978 and Murphy Medical Center was founded in 1979. [15] In the 1990s, MMC went from being a county-supported not-for-profit hospital to becoming a private not-for-profit medical facility, which allowed it to fundraise to secure financing. [16] From 1990 through 2017 Murphy Medical Center held an annual 5K run at the hospital campus to raise money. The race was called “Two Hours From Anywhere.” [17]
The hospital opened an urgent care center near downtown Murphy by 2013, treating approximately 12,000 walk-in patients per year. As of 2013, the emergency department at the Peachtree campus treated approximately 15,000 patients per year. [18]
Murphy Medical began losing money as uncompensated care grew to $13 million in 2013. [18] Erlanger Health System acquired the hospital in January 2018 and changed its name in January 2019. The medical center closed its labor and delivery unit in December 2019. [19]
As of 2018, the hospital had approximately 450 employees. [20] In 2023, Erlanger Western Carolina Hospital served as incident command post during the 5,000-acre Collett Ridge Fire. [21]
Cherokee County is the westernmost county in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It borders Tennessee to its west and Georgia to its south. As of the 2020 census, the population was 28,774. The county seat is Murphy.
Andrews is a town in Cherokee County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 1,667 at the 2020 census.
Murphy is a town in and the county seat of Cherokee County, North Carolina, United States. It is situated at the confluence of the Hiwassee and Valley rivers. It is the westernmost county seat in the state of North Carolina, approximately 360 miles (580 km) from the state capital in Raleigh. The population of Murphy was 1,608 at the 2020 census.
The Chattanooga Area Regional Transportation Authority (CARTA) is the mass transit provider for Chattanooga, Tennessee and its vicinity.
Carolinas Medical Center (CMC) is an 874-bed non-profit, tertiary, research and academic medical center located in Charlotte, North Carolina, servicing the southern North Carolina, northern South Carolina, and the Metrolina region. Carolinas Medical Center is one of the region's only academic university-level teaching centers. The hospital is the flagship hospital of Atrium Health. Carolinas Medical Center is affiliated with the Wake Forest School of Medicine. Carolinas Medical Center is also an ACS designated level I trauma center and has a heliport to handle medevac patients. Attached to the medical center is the Levine Children's Hospital, treating infants, children, adolescents, and young adults.
Western Carolina Regional Airport is a county-owned public-use airport located 2 miles (3.2 km) west of the central business district of Andrews, in Cherokee County, North Carolina, United States. It was formerly known as Andrews-Murphy Airport.
Warne ( "worn") is an unincorporated community in Brasstown Township, Clay County, North Carolina, United States. In 2010, Clay County was the fourth least populated county in North Carolina, inhabited by approximately 10,587 people. The region has added considerably to its population, a 20.6% increase since 2000. Warne is closer to the capitals of five other states than to Raleigh, the capital of North Carolina.
The Cherokee Scout is a weekly newspaper in Murphy, North Carolina, and Cherokee County. It is one of the largest newspapers in far-west North Carolina.
North Carolina Highway 141 (NC 141) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It serves to connect the Peachtree community, located in the Valley River Mountains, with Marble and Murphy.
Marble is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Cherokee County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 321.
The Erlanger Health System, incorporated as the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Hospital Authority, a non-profit, public benefit corporation registered in the State of Tennessee, is a system of hospitals, physicians, and medical services based in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Erlanger's main location, Erlanger Baroness Hospital, is a tertiary referral hospital and Level I Trauma Center serving a 50,000 sq mi (130,000 km2) region of East Tennessee, North Georgia, North Alabama, and western North Carolina. The system provides critical care services to patients within a 150 mi (240 km) radius through six Life Force air ambulance helicopters, which are equipped to perform in-flight surgical procedures and transfusions.
Blood Assurance is a non-profit organization designed to provide blood to surrounding hospitals of the Chattanooga, Tennessee, North Georgia, Alabama, Southwest Virginia, and North Carolina areas.
Brasstown is an unincorporated community located mostly within Clay County, North Carolina, United States, though roughly one third of Brasstown is within the adjacent Cherokee County. Brasstown Creek travels through the community and separates the two counties.
Cherokee County Schools manages the 13 public schools in Cherokee County, North Carolina, United States, with an enrollment of 3,081 students and a 12.7:1 student-to-teacher ratio.
Murphy High School (MHS) is a public high school in Murphy, North Carolina. It serves grades 9–12 and is one of only three high schools in the Cherokee County Schools system.
Novant Health is a four-state integrated network of physician clinics, outpatient centers and hospitals across the Southeast. Its network consists of more than 2,000 physicians and 40,000 employees at more than 850 locations, including 19 medical centers and hundreds of outpatient facilities and physician clinics. The organization was formed on 1 July 1997 by the merger of Carolina Medicorp of Winston-Salem, North Carolina and Presbyterian Health Services of Charlotte, North Carolina. Headquartered in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Novant Health serves more than 7 million patients annually. In 2019, Novant Health was ranked #38 in Forbes' annual ranking of America's Best Employers for Diversity, #3 in Diversity MBA Magazine's annual ranking of Best Places to Work for Women & Diverse Managers, and #6 in North Carolina in Forbes' annual ranking of America's Best Employers by State.
Children's Hospital at Erlanger is a 118-bed, tertiary care children's hospital located in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The hospital serves as the pediatric center of excellence for Erlanger Health System, the tenth largest public health system in the United States. Children's Hospital at Erlanger treats infants, children, teens, and young adults aged 0-21. It is located adjacent to Erlanger Baroness Hospital, just east of downtown Chattanooga.
UNC Medical Center (UNCMC) is a 932-bed non-profit, nationally ranked, public, research and academic medical center located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, providing tertiary care for the Research Triangle, surrounding areas and North Carolina. The medical center is the flagship campus of the UNC Health Care Health System and is made up of four hospitals that include the North Carolina Memorial Hospital, North Carolina Children's Hospital, North Carolina Neurosciences Hospital, North Carolina Women's Hospital, and the North Carolina Cancer Hospital. UNCMC is affiliated with the University of North Carolina School of Medicine. UNCMC features an ACS designated adult and pediatric Level 1 Trauma Center and has a helipad to handle medevac patients.
Peachtree is a community located in Cherokee County, North Carolina. It is named after the numerous peach trees found in the area. The local schools are Peachtree Elementary School, Murphy and Andrews Middle School, and Murphy and Andrews High School.
District Memorial Hospital in Andrews is long gone and its buildings have been razed.Accessed January 18, 2024.
35°04′22″N83°58′00″W / 35.0728°N 83.9667°W