Author: Brittney Lofthouse

RALEIGH — The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services today announced two additional cases of measles in unvaccinated siblings in Buncombe County. This brings the total number of North Carolina measles cases to seven since late December. Both cases are connected to the ongoing measles outbreak in Spartanburg County, South Carolina. To protect the family’s privacy, no additional information about these cases will be released. On Tuesday, South Carolina health officials announced 124 new measles cases, bringing the total number related to their outbreak to 434.   … Continued

Retired NFL Linebacker Chris Draft will be coming to Cherokee on January 29th to host a free Fitness Blitz exercise program designed for cancer patients. Cherokee Indian Hospital Authority is partnering with UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center to host the event to celebrate the Get Real & Heel exercise oncology program, which offers cancer survivors … Continued

Monday night’s Governing Board Christmas Dinner was an opportunity to pause and recognize a remarkable chapter of service by Rebecca Hillane Lambert.   Hillane has served as the Health Service Administrator Representative on the Cherokee Indian Hospital Authority Governing Board from July 1, 2009 through November 25, 2025. Over sixteen years, her leadership helped guide … Continued

The Cherokee Indian Hospital Authority (CIHA) is proud to announce that its Chief Optometrist, Dr. Sharhonda Harrill, has been named the North Carolina Young Optometrist of the Year by NC Eyes, the North Carolina Optometric Society.   The Young Optometrist of the Year Award recognizes a North Carolina optometrist early in their career who has … Continued

  The Cherokee Indian Hospital Authority (CIHA), alongside Tribal leadership, community members, and project partners, celebrated the opening of the new Cherokee County Clinic this week. The state-of-the-art facility, located at 2313 Tomotla Road in Marble, North Carolina, represents a significant milestone in enhancing local health services for members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee … Continued

Written by Blythe Winchester, MD, MPH, CMD, AGSF November is Alzheimer’s Awareness Month, and this month serves to bring awareness to a disease that affects more than 6 million people in this country. Dementia is a group of symptoms that happens when people have trouble with memory- this can range from misplacing items to forgetting … Continued

When CIHA’s Public Relations Department was preparing for the final Flashback Friday post to complete the “A New Generation of Care” campaign celebrating the 10-year anniversary of opening the doors of the new Cherokee Indian Hospital Authority facility, they envisioned a colorful collage of “first day” photos—some grand gesture showing happy employees and smiling patients. … Continued

  As we honor Native American Heritage Month, we’re taking a moment to look back at some of the people who shaped early healthcare for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians — including a doctor, whose story is as surprising as it is memorable.   In 1893, Dr. Hartman Oberlander arrived in Cherokee after two … Continued