Arielle Dreher

All Stories

News >  Spokane

Union workers at Sacred Heart reach tentative contract agreement

UPDATED: Wed., Jan. 8, 2020

Unionized service and maintenance workers at Sacred Heart Medical Center reached a tentative agreement with officials early Wednesday morning.

News >  Spokane

Sacred Heart nurses reach tentative agreement with Providence officials

UPDATED: Tue., Jan. 7, 2020

More than 1,900 nurses at Sacred Heart Medical Center will vote on the tentative agreement next week reached in the early hours of Tuesday morning after long negotiation sessions.

News >  Spokane

New law taking effect Jan. 1 means no more surprise medical bills for some Washingtonians

Mon., Jan. 6, 2020

Some Washingtonians will no longer have surprise medical bills in 2020, due to a new state law prohibiting the practice for some state-regulated health plans.

News >  Spokane

Unions delay strike at Sacred Heart, Holy Family as negotiations progress overnight

UPDATED: Fri., Jan. 3, 2020

Unions representing thousands of health care workers in Washington announced early Friday that they have postponed a strike.

News >  Spokane

Providence nurses, workers statewide – including in Spokane – announced intend to strike on Jan. 14

UPDATED: Fri., Jan. 3, 2020

Unions representing about 13,000 nurses and health care workers at many Providence locations statewide, including at Spokane’s Sacred Heart Medical Center and Holy Family Hospital, intend to strike on Jan. 14.

News >  Spokane

More negotiations scheduled as nurses closer to striking at Providence locations statewide

Thu., Jan. 2, 2020

Nurses and health care workers represented by SEIU Healthcare 1199NW union at seven Swedish locations in the Seattle area did not reach an agreement with Providence officials on Monday, Dec. 30, leaving open the possibility of a statewide strike in the new year.

News >  Spokane

Washington health benefit exchange enrollment numbers dip for 2020

Tue., Dec. 31, 2019

Nearly 212,000 Washingtonians have selected health plans through the state exchange, and enrollment ended on Dec. 30.

News >  Spokane

‘Nobody should have to live with the heartbreak’: Liz Montgomery fights for safe sleep for infants

Thu., Dec. 26, 2019

Liz Montgomery has been fighting for well over a decade to educate communities in the Inland Northwest about safe sleep for their infants, and her role is set to expand as she works on infant safety for the state of Washington and Idaho this year.

News >  Spokane

Decade in review: More insurance, more consolidation, more medical education in Spokane

UPDATED: Thu., Dec. 26, 2019

Health care has undergone some dramatic changes in the Spokane region, from new provider groups entering the market to the expansion of medical education east of the Cascades. The landscape of health care in the community looks significantly different than it did a decade ago.

News >  Spokane

Lincoln Hospital now offering 3D mammography to patients

Tue., Dec. 24, 2019

More patients at Lincoln Hospital and clinics will have access to preventive breast cancer screening in the new year thanks to the hospital’s recently installed 3D mammography machine.

News >  Spokane

Report: Foster care system placing more kids in hotels while dealing with intensifying needs

Sun., Dec. 22, 2019

Children in the state’s custody are often placed in emergency placements, in hotel rooms or foster homes, for single nights at a time, an annual ombuds report found.

News >  Spokane

Program that supports youth in foster care receives $500,000 from Gates Foundation, plans to expand

Fri., Dec. 20, 2019

Treehouse, a program that pairs youth in the foster care system with supportive coordinators, will expand its services in the new year after a $500,000 donation from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

News >  Spokane

Cover that cough: Community sees outbreak of whooping cough, mainly in school-aged children

UPDATED: Thu., Dec. 19, 2019

The Spokane Regional Health District confirmed more than 50 pertussis cases, called “whooping cough,” in the Spokane area, impacting predominantly school-aged children with cases reported in nearly every school district.

News >  Spokane

Program aims to foster relationships between Eastern State Hospital patients, Spokane police

UPDATED: Fri., Dec. 13, 2019

The Spokane Police Department and Eastern State Hospital have partnered, allowing law enforcement officers to establish relationships with patients and teach a class about interacting with law enforcement prior to their discharge.

News >  Spokane

Operating in the red: Providence Sacred Heart has been losing money since 2016

Tue., Dec. 10, 2019

Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center is operating at a loss, and has been since 2016, and hospital leaders say this is largely due to expenses outpacing revenue.

News >  Spokane

Spokane sees high rates of an unusual flu strain this year

UPDATED: Mon., Dec. 9, 2019

Flu season is starting early this year, and Washington state already has high flu activity reported at a regional level, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data show.

News >  Washington

Pullman hospital bond barely rejected; officials seek new path for expansion, residency program

Thu., Dec. 5, 2019

Pullman voters narrowly rejected a bond measure that would have allowed Pullman Regional Hospital to expand its facilities, electronic records and prepare to apply for a residency program with the WSU College of Medicine.

News >  Spokane

Nurse-family partnership program that supports soon-to-be mothers will expand in Spokane

Tue., Dec. 3, 2019

The Spokane County nurse-family partnership program will expand to serve 50 more families in 2020 after a $293,000 boost in funding from state lawmakers.

News >  Spokane

Area Native Americans navigate past, present as other cultures celebrate their heritage

UPDATED: Thu., Nov. 28, 2019

“I like to think of it as medicine, because you’re bringing back something that your ancestors did,” said Isaac Tonasket, a senior at Wellpinit High School, who is working to carry on a family tradition by forming a drum circle at the school.

News >  Spokane

Sacred Heart nurses prepare for strike as Tri-Cities nurses reach tentative agreement

UPDATED: Wed., Nov. 27, 2019

A group of unionized nurses in the Tri-Cities reached a tentative contract agreement with Providence officials Monday night, but their counterparts at Spokane’s Sacred Heart Medical Center are continuing to prepare to strike.

News >  Spokane

With few choices and ‘a lot of unknowns,’ some rural school employees are wary of new health plans

Tue., Nov. 26, 2019

State-sponsored health insurance for all school district employees means different plans available to each employee, based on where they live, not where they teach.

News >  Spokane

Panhandle Health District fills gap in dental care for North Idaho kids

Sun., Nov. 24, 2019

The Panhandle Health District, which covers the five northern Idaho counties, is helping to fill the gap for uninsured and Medicaid-insured children in the region.

News >  Spokane

Washington State Board of Health bans vape products that contain vitamin E acetate

Tue., Nov. 19, 2019

The Washington State Board of Health voted to ban vitamin E acetate in vape products amid a national health crisis that has led to dozens of deaths and thousands of serious lung injuries.

News >  Spokane

After Spokane group home’s closure, parents of children with intensive medical issues struggle to find support they need

Sun., Nov. 17, 2019

The only group care home in northeastern Washington available for families with medically intensive children closed this summer, after the state Department of Children, Youth, and Families suspended its license, following several injuries and incidents reported there. The closure left families with difficult decisions.

News >  Spokane

Spokane County looks to mirror, modify Kootenai County crisis center model

Sun., Nov. 10, 2019

The need for Spokane County residents in crisis to travel to Kootenai County could lessen, as Spokane is in the process of creating a mental health crisis stabilization unit of its own.