Health

FAIRBANKS — The commissioner of the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services has asked for an independent investigation into workplace safety at the Alaska Psychiatric Institute. 

FAIRBANKS — Sen. Lisa  Murkowski, R-Alaska, has teamed up with U.S. Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minnesota, to expand mental health services in the public school system, according to a news release.  

FAIRBANKS — Nurse Ella Goss was named chief executive officer of Providence Alaska Medical Center, the state’s largest hospital. She started on Monday.

FAIRBANKS — The Medical Dental Arts Building on Lathrop Street has been renamed the William H. Doolittle, M.D. Medical Building after a longtime area physician who died in 2016.

FAIRBANKS — Students in grades 7-12 are receiving training in the coming months on dating violence prevention and intervention under Alaska’s Safe Children’s Act, also known as Bree’s Law, which took effect last year.

FAIRBANKS — Inpatient opioid withdrawal management is now available at Gateway to Recovery, a Behavioral Health Service program by the Fairbanks Native Association, an FNA announcement said.

FAIRBANKS — The state of Alaska could charge fees for more health-related services under a bill awaiting action in the state Senate. 

FAIRBANKS — The death rate from alcohol, drugs and suicide in Alaska is projected to jump from 63 per 100,000 people in 2015 to 84.4 per 100,000 people by 2025, according to a new report, “Pain in the Nation: The Drug, Alcohol and Suicide Epidemics and the Need for a National Resilience Stra…

FAIRBANKS — The Blood Bank of Alaska has a critical need for type O blood, according to the agency’s website.

FAIRBANKS — The Alaska Regional Hospital and the Mat-Su Regional Medical Center are looking to offer 24 and 36 new treatment beds, respectively, for people suffering from substance abuse or mental health issues.