Advantage Valley Offers Excellent Health Care Options
Industry is also a major player in this West Virginia region's economy by employing more than 28,000 people.
One of the most important resources in any community is a strong and healthy population, and the outstanding collection of health care providers in Advantage Valley is focused on helping the community they serve stay well and active.
The health care industry is a robust and major component of the economy, employing more than 28,000 people at more than 600 health care establishments.
Options Abound for Health Care in Huntington
Setting the standard for excellence in the region is Mountain Health Network, a multifaceted, not-for-profit health delivery system based in Huntington, WV. Collectively, the network is a well-trusted neighbor committed to improving the wellbeing of more than 1 million children and adults in 23 counties scattered across the central Appalachian area of West Virginia, southern Ohio and eastern Kentucky.
Included in the network is:
- Cabell Huntington Hospital, a 303-bed teaching facility for Marshall University’s schools of medicine, pharmacy and nursing.
- St. Mary’s Medical Center, a 393-bed teaching hospital that operates St. Mary’s Schools of Nursing, Respiratory Care and Medical Imaging.
- Edwards Comprehensive Cancer Center and Hoops Family Children’s Hospital, a 72-bed pediatric specialty hospital, both within Cabell Huntington Hospital.
- A 60-member multispecialty physician group.
- Huntington Internal Medicine Group, an outpatient facility of St. Mary’s Medical Center with a team of over 75 providers.
- A management agreement with Pleasant Valley Hospital, a 101-bed acute care hospital north of Huntington.
Physician and Cabell County native Kevin Yingling, a well-respected trailblazer in education and clinical care, became the CEO of Mountain Health Network in August 2021.
Health Care Accolades
Mountain Health Network’s dedication to delivering stellar service has been recognized with blue-ribbon honors, including Cabell Huntington Hospital being selected as the only West Virginia care facility on Healthgrades’ Top 250 Best Hospitals in America list. St. Mary’s Medical Center was recognized in the 2021-22 annual Best Hospitals ranking by U.S. News & World Report.
Eager to help the people living in Advantage Valley, Yingling says it’s “encouraging to serve as the leader of this growing system. We are well prepared to provide advanced, life-saving medicine with compassionate care to every individual who enters our health care system.”
Another regional leader in health care is Marshall Health, the clinical enterprise of the Marshall University Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine. Its medical staff of 400 providers offer primary care and more than 75 specialties at 40 locations across West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio. As an academic health system, it merges innovations in treatment technology with the latest research to find solutions for complex conditions. With more than 1,800 employees, Marshall Health is one of the region’s largest employers and among the top 25 largest employers in West Virginia.
Huntington is also home to the Hershel “Woody” Williams VA Medical Center, a fully accredited 80-bed acute medical and surgical care facility that also helps homeless veterans.
Health Care in Charleston, WV Is Robust
Located in the capital city, Charleston Area Medical Center is a nonprofit, 956-bed teaching hospital with a Level I trauma center and more than 700 physicians with admitting privileges. The medical center’s cancer program has been continuously accredited since 1947. The hospital offers top heart programs and is home to Robotic and Urology Centers of Excellence.
West Virginia’s first freestanding Women and Children’s Hospital sits on the campus and houses highly skilled newborn and pediatric intensive care units. And it served nearly 75,000 people seeking health information or community benefit services in 2021.
Charleston’s Thomas Health was formed in 2007 with the merger of Thomas Memorial and Saint Francis, two esteemed hospitals with nearly 170 years of combined faith-based care. The union resulted in a 383-bed hospital system with 1,800 employees and an estimated 450 physicians, making Thomas Health the 17th-largest private employer in West Virginia.
Region Has Plenty of Resources
Since 1967, regardless of patients’ ability to pay, the Prestera Center — the largest behavioral health services provider in West Virginia — has been offering help to rural areas where individuals may not be able to access care for mental health and substance abuse.
Patients with black lung disease can find specialized assistance and treatment at the Boone Memorial Hospital Black Lung Center in Madison, West Virginia. The center also offers outreach events to aid coal miners with completing federal and state black lung claims.
Citizens of Ashland, Kentucky, have found hands-on care at King’s Daughters Medical Center, a 387-bed, short-term acute care facility that has been a landmark on Lexington Avenue since 1917. A far-reaching service provided is online health assessments for a variety of conditions, from breast cancer to sleep apnea.
