Bringing Healthcare Home

For people living in the 18 counties of Western North Carolina, Mission Health System is working to keep quality, cost-effective, compassionate healthcare close to home. That means supporting strong community hospitals that are delivering care at the local level as well as providing nationally recognized specialty care right here in our region.

In this 2008 Report to the Community, we invite you to learn more about the members of the Mission Health System family, which includes Mission Hospital, Mission Children's Hospital, Asheville Specialty Hospital, Blue Ridge Regional Hospital, McDowell Hospital and Mission Healthcare Foundation. Each plays a role in making sure Western North Carolina residents have the information and support they need to live healthier lives, and that they have ready access to high quality care when disease or injury strikes.

Local Roots, Local Leadership
This Mission family has deep, strong roots in Western North Carolina, dating back to 1885 when the ladies of the Flower Mission founded Mission Hospital in Asheville. McDowell Hospital has been serving its community for over a century, and Blue Ridge Regional Hospital has a proud history of service for 54 years. Through the decades, these nonprofit institutions that make up Mission Health System have been governed by local residents - community leaders, employers and physicians - who volunteer their time to ensure that the health needs of our communities are well-served.

Collaborating Across the Region
Today, Mission Health System has evolved into a comprehensive health system that provides the financial strength and resources to help our member hospitals preserve locally based care and keep quality standards at the highest level. As the national economy has declined in the past year, our smaller affiliated hospitals have been able to weather the storm by being part of a larger, financially stable health system.

As Western North Carolina's only provider of advanced-level or "tertiary" care, we also know that our job is to serve the entire region. Mission is committed to working with community hospitals and physicians across Western North Carolina to improve health.

Examples are many. Mission has led providers and paramedics across the region in a statewide initiative to improve protocols for promptly treating heart attack victims. With Mission's active leadership, the Western North Carolina Health Network's DataLink project electronically linked 13 of the 16 hospitals in Western North Carolina to speed access to patient medical records and improve care. We've built on the pioneering work of Mission's traveling "Tooth Bus" to help rural hospitals set up their own dental clinics. And our Mountain Area Medical Airlift (MAMA) helicopters ensure that people in the most rural reaches of Western North Carolina can be linked to lifesaving care in minutes.

The people and communities we serve count on Mission Health System to be innovative, responsive and dedicated to the highest standards in all we do. That is a responsibility we are honored to bear, and a promise we pledge to keep.

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