$6M grant to go toward

behavioral health unit

MultiCare Health System’s Inland Northwest Foundation has received a $6 million grant from the Washington state Department of Commerce that will go toward the construction of an inpatient behavioral health unit in MultiCare Deaconess Hospital, on Spokane's lower South Hill. The new unit is expected to have at least 20 beds for inpatient behavioral health care.

“MultiCare is focused on providing greater access to behavioral health and adapting to best meet the needs of our growing community,” says Samantha Clark, assistant vice president of strategy and business development for the MultiCare Behavioral Health Network.

According to a recent study, more than 1 in 5 Washingtonians have a diagnosable mental illness, and the life expectancy of people with severe mental illness is shortened by 10 to 25 years compared to those without a behavioral health condition.

In 2023, suicidal ideation was the eighth most common diagnosis in the Deaconess emergency department. That figure represents a significant increase in the number of patients with suicidal ideation coming to the emergency department for treatment. In 2022, suicidal ideation was the 17th most common diagnosis.

 Kootenai Health reveals

potential data breach

Coeur d’Alene-based health network Kootenai Health disclosed in August that it had a potential data breach that occurred nearly six months earlier involving information belonging to patients, employees, and dependents of employees.

The potential breach is tied to unauthorized activity that disrupted access to some information technology centers that an investigation has traced back to Feb. 22.

The activity may have included illicit access to Social Security numbers, driver’s license or government issued identification numbers, medical information, and insurance information, according to a press release from Kootenai Health.

Kootenai Health and its subsidiaries Kootenai Clinic, Kootenai Outpatient Surgery, and Kootenai Outpatient Imaging have sent notices to potentially impacted individuals.

Most of WSU’s first

med cohort to stay

Most members of the Washington State University Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine’s inaugural class of doctors are choosing to practice in Washington as they complete their postgraduate training in residency programs across the country and decide where to go as fully qualified physicians.

According to a recent alumni survey, 74% of respondents plan to go into practice, with 94% either planning to or considering working in Washington. Nearly a third plan to practice in Eastern Washington or other rural areas.

“This is the realization of what we were founded to do,” asserts Leila Harrison, vice dean for admissions, student affairs, and alumni engagement, in a press release.

City, CHAS expand

street med program

A new partnership between the city of Spokane and CHAS Health is designed to help expand street medicine outreach to the local unhoused community.

The CHAS Health Street Medicine team provides primary care, wound care, foot care, referral coordination, and emergency services coordination.

A $1 million appropriation to the city of Spokane from the Washington state Legislature will go toward expanding the team’s hours of service operations.

According to a press release issued by the city, the partnership will be aligned with recommendations from Challenge Seattle, a coalition of 22 West Side civic organizations.

“As Spokane expands their street medicine program, this proven model will provide medical care and mobile treatment to avoid emergency rooms and prevent crises,” Challenge Seattle CEO and former Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire says in the release.

Premera, USL Spokane

announce sponsorship

Premera Blue Cross is partnering with USL Spokane, which includes the pro women’s club Spokane Zephyr FC and pro men’s club Spokane Velocity FC, as a new sponsor for the soccer season.

The multiyear sponsorship will focus on mental health and teacher appreciation.

It will include in-game and off-field initiatives with USL Spokane to help raise awareness and normalize conversations about mental health.

The new Teacher of the Match program will celebrate Spokane Public Schools’ teachers and employees. During every Velocity FC and Zephyr FC home match, one teacher or employee will be selected by the school district to receive tickets to attend and be recognized during the game.

David Condon, vice president at Premera Blue Cross, says, “The club shares our commitment to supporting the community, and we look forward to working with them to shine the light on topics like mental health that are important to people living in the Inland Northwest."

HSSA awards nearly $500K

in new matching grants

Health Sciences & Services Authority of Spokane has named two recipients of matching grants for bioscience-based economic development valued at just under $500,000. 

The two grants are the latest of six that HSSA has matched in the past three months.

Photon Biosciences, a biotech company based in Spokane Valley, received $299,812 from HSSA. 

According to an HSSA press release, the latest grant is the fourth HSSA award to Photon Biosciences, which relocated from Pullman to Spokane. The newest award matches a grant from the National Institute of Health and continues their work to introduce a suite of services designed to "revolutionize protein structure determination through Cryo-Electron Microscopy (Cryo-EM), Cryo-Electron Tomography (Cryo-ET), and Protein Crystallography," the release states.

Medcurity Inc. received $200,000 from HSSA. The Spokane-based medical records technology company is expected to use its award to incorporate generative artificial intelligence capabilities into its software, leading to more efficient, accurate, and timely security risk management.

HSSA Executive Director Erin Williams Hueter says in the release, “HSSA has grown and consistently receives high quality grant proposals from exciting innovators here in Spokane County."