| PRESS
RELEASE:
D. Alice LaClaire
April 5, 2004
Public Relations Coordinator
Phone: 605-964-4155
The Dream of a New Hospital is a Reality
for the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe
EAGLE
BUTTE, SD - The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe moves
forward in making the dream of a new hospital facility
come true for the members of the Cheyenne River
Indian Reservation. “Meeting with Indian Health
Service staff to discuss the design for the new
hospital are the first initial stages in building
the facility,” said Chairman Harold Frazier.
Chairman
Harold Frazier and Tribal Council Representatives
met with Kathy Block, Rich Melton, Kathy Mercure,
Vern Donnell and Dr. Two Hawks from the Indian Health
Service on March 12, 2004 and again on March 19,
2004 to discuss the design and development of the
new hospital facility.
The
Indian Health Service (I.H.S.) approved for a six
bed facility according to their Project Justification
Document (PJD). The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe realizing
a greater need for the new hospital hired their
own consultants to do a thorough and an accurate
analysis of inpatient and ER services. The assessment
done by the consultants provides documentation and
statistics to support the need for a larger 22-bed
hospital. This documented assessment will be provided
as an addendum to the PJD to support the addition
of inpatient beds beyond the six-bed facility currently
approved.
The
Tribe and the I.H.S. representatives will continue
to work together to provide the Cheyenne River Indian
Reservation with a facility that will meet the needs
of the people. Tribal Chairman Harold Frazier stated,
“In our history of the Cheyenne River Sioux
Tribe the I.H.S. never built us a hospital. The
Corp of Engineers built the current inpatient hospital
after the agency was moved to Eagle Butte, which
we have outgrown years ago and since then it has
been a vision shared by many to get a new hospital
for our people.”
As
the Chairman of the Health Committee in 2002, Tribal
Chairman Frazier conducted health hearings in five
different communities throughout the reservation.
“The people came forward and provided testimony
on the health needs of our Reservation. What the
People told us was very moving and showed a critical
health need. We used this testimony and those moving
stories to show Congress that there is a dire need
for a new hospital and by working together we have
brought positive results,” said Chairman Frazier.
There
will be further meetings in this ongoing effort
with the Indian Health Service Staff and the Tribe.
Many preliminary details and decisions have to be
worked out, but, it will result in our dream of
a new hospital with construction beginning in the
year 2005.
| 
