St. Charles finishes first steps in expansion of Bend emergency department

St. Charles Bend Emergency Department opened its new rapid medical evaluation unit in Bend on Monday, adding enough space to treat 12 more patients. St. Charles Health System had 107,558 emergency room visits across Bend, Redmond, Madras and Prineville in the last year, up 7.7% from 2023. In 2025, nearly half of those visits — 53,411 emergency room patients — were in Bend. By 2043 the health system projects that there will be more than 75,000 annual visits to the Bend emergency department, the only Level II trauma center east of the Cascades. “Our Central Oregon community continues to grow at a rapid pace,” said Stacy Youngs, Vice President of Operations for the Bend hospital campus. “Our Emergency Department is often full, which can sometimes mean long waits for care or treatment in creative spaces like hallways, which is not ideal.

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