We had a good turn out of trick-or-treaters and the residents of Booker Rest Home had a great time with staff dressed up as well!

Columbia County Health System would like to extend a huge thank you to our Infection Control team members for all they do to keep us healthy throughout the year. Our infection control nurse, Sonya Glaus, has had a great impact in the overall health of our employees and our residents in Booker Rest Home. Sonya works closely with our Hazmat and Disaster teams, lead by Jamie Allen, as well to ensure that we are prepared for disasters that are either a direct result of infectious decease or that can lead to infectious disease. Thanks to all staff members that contribute to our healthy environment!

We received an unsolicited letter from a concerned community member, to our Facebook Account, that we thought we would share. Thank you for your kind, considerate, and thoughtful words: Letter from a community member.

This is a perspective on supporting local healthcare, but also about supporting local businesses in general.

This is not just a local or regional problem, this is becoming a National issue. Should access to quality healthcare exist only in metropolitan areas? What happens to these communities when they not only lose access to healthcare and emergency services, but often times lose their communities largest employer? According to the National Rural Health Association, 28 Rural Hospitals have closed since the beginning of 2013; this is nearly double the pace of the previous 20 months. In the past year alone, more rural hospitals closed than in the prior 15 years combined.

According to Ezekiel Emanuel, a White House health policy special advisor, one in five hospitals will close by 2020. That will mean nearly 1000 hospital closures across the Nation. Emanuel predicts the first hospitals to go will be smaller ones, which already operate with less than half of their beds full. At Columbia County Health System, we would offer the counter point that its not all about how many “Inpatients” the hospital has, but rather the 230 patients we see on a daily basis for everything from out patient emergency services, lab, PT, and X-Ray to forty-four long term care residents.