Most patients know what to expect when they go to the dentist, the doctor or the hospital and need an X-ray. As part of the process, a heavy apron or other type of lead shield is placed over the top of vital organs to protect them from radiation.

Thanks to new recommendations and scientific evidence, that long-held practice is starting to change. In mid-February, the St. Charles Radiology teams will no longer shield patients undergoing diagnostic radiology exams.

“We’ve had all of this discussion coming from different physicists and imaging organizations in recent years saying that shielding is ineffective and actually may cause more harm,” said Rob Kennard, director of Radiology for St. Charles Health System. “Just recently, the state of Oregon said, ‘We are not going to require shielding anymore.’”

In early January, the Oregon Health Authority announced the reversal of an Oregon Administrative Rule that previously required gonadal shielding for patients going through diagnostic radiology tests. The reason – after years of research scientists now believe the shield can interfere with the image quality results, which can lead to a need for a second image resulting in more radiation exposure, time and expense for patients.

The Oregon Health Authority made its decision based on recommendations from other organizations including the American Association of Physicists in Medicine and the Image Gently Alliance – which is focused on safe imaging practices for children.

“The practice of shielding was never based on scientific evidence,” said Michael Timmerman, radiation safety officer for St. Charles Health System. “The belief was that if we irradiated patients’ gonads it could cause damage to their future children. But in reality, there has been no evidence of that in any scientific studies.”

Michael Timmerman explained that any X-ray exam results in some scatter of radiation throughout the inside of the body to other organs – but that the external shield doesn’t do anything to prevent that scatter dose. Instead of shielding, radiology professionals are working hard to reduce patients’ lifetime exposure to radiation in a variety of ways including improvements in technology and the sharing of test results through electronic medical records systems to ensure patients don’t have unnecessary repeat exams.

“The industry standard and trend is for the radiation dose to continue decreasing,” Kennard said. “We may be getting rid of this process, but we continue to invest in equipment and technology that are helping to reduce radiation exposure. We are doing a lot that is having a positive effect.”

Patient Rights and Responsibilities

At St. Charles, we are concerned that each patient entrusted to our care is treated with dignity, respect and compassion. We recognize that all patients have basic rights, and we are committed to honoring these rights.

Likewise, St. Charles has a right to expect reasonable and responsible behavior from patients, their relatives and friends. The following is a summary of rights and responsibilities that we believe serve as a foundation for a good relationship between patients and staff.

Patient Rights and Responsibilities (English)

Los derechos y las responsabilidades del paciente (Espanol)

Oregon Support Person Legislation

Patients with disabilities have a right to support persons while they are in any Oregon hospital. Qualifying disabilities include but are not limited to a physical, intellectual, behavioral or cognitive impairment, deafness, being hard of hearing or other communication barrier, blindness, autism, or dementia.

Read more  St. Charles policy

Personas de apoyo hospitalario

Nondiscrimination Policy

St. Charles Health System complies with applicable federal and state civil rights laws and does not discriminate, exclude, or treat individuals differently on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, age, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran’s status, genetic information, marital status or any other legally-protected classification.

Nondiscrimination Notice

Privacy Practices

We are committed to protecting the privacy of health information we create or receive about you. Health information that identifies you (“protected health information” or “health information”) includes your medical record and other information relating to your care or payment for care.

Notice of Privacy Practices

Aviso de prácticas de privacidad

Behavioral Health

9423 - Psychiatric Assessment Team BH Discharge Planning Policy English

10046 - Psychiatric Assessment Team BH Discharge Planning Policy Spanish

10039 - Lay Caregiver Informational Handout English

10040 - Lay Caregiver Informational Handout Spanish

10035 - BH Authorization for St. Charles To Speak with Designated Lay Caregiver English

10036 - BH Authorization for St. Charles To Speak with Designated Lay Caregiver Spanish

Now at St. Charles Bend, Mako robotic-arm surgical technology brings a higher level of precision to joint replacement and gives patients more options as they are considering surgery. By targeting only the part of the knee damaged by osteoarthritis, surgeons using Mako can resurface your knee while sparing the bone and healthy ligaments around it. For total hip replacement, Mako technology uses patient-specific, CT-guided imagery to determine implant size and alignment within a tenth of a millimeter.

Watch this video testimonial from some of our Mako patients.

All surgeries involve risk of complications. Before you decide on surgery, discuss treatment options with your doctor.

Why lung cancer screening matters

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the U.S., but early detection saves lives. Screening with low-dose CT (LDCT) can find cancer before symptoms appear, improving treatment outcomes.

Who should consider screening?

You may be eligible if you: 

• Are 50–80 years old
• Have a 20+ pack-year smoking history
• Currently smoke or quit within the last 15 years

Talk to your health care provider to see if screening is right for you.

Benefits and risks of screening

Benefits:

• Detect cancer early
• Reduce mortality by up to 20%
• Higher successful treatment outcomes

Risks:

• False positives/Additional testing: Low- Dose Lung CT may find abnormalities that may require additional tests or procedures
• False Negative: No test is perfect. It is possible that you may have a medical condition, including lung cancer, that is not found during your exam. This is called a false negative.
• Radiation exposure: Low-dose CT lung screening uses a small amount of radiation to create images of your lungs

Low Dose CT Scans (LDCT) is one of the most effective cancer screening tests. One life is saved for every 320 people who are screened.

Talk to your primary care provider

We encourage patients to engage in shared decision making with their primary care providers. This means discussing:

• Your personal risk
• The pros and cons of screening
• Your values and preferences

Support for quitting smoking

Quitting smoking is the most effective way to reduce your risk of lung cancer.

We offer:

• Referrals to quitlines (e.g., 1-800-QUIT-NOW)
• Counseling and support resources

Learn more 

Explore trusted resources:

• LUNGevity Educational Materials
• Lung Screening Education
• American College of Radiology

Additional questions?

Natasha Bickmore, RN, BSN, OCN
Nurse Navigator
Pulmonary Nodule Clinic RN
541-706-5802

View St. Charles Open Trials

The St. Charles Cancer Center has many programs and support opportunities thanks to our wonderful volunteers.

Opportunities include:

• Patient Ambassadors work closely with patients receiving cancer treatment
• Volunteers with tech and office skills provide needed clerical support
• Volunteers are needed for event and program support

It’s not a dream. We really get to live and work here. And we invite you to join us.

We are looking for Certified Surgical Techs to provide care to patients in operating rooms at our St. Charles Bend hospital. With 292 beds and more than 3600 employees, St. Charles Bend is the hub of medical care for Central and Eastern Oregon and we are continually making advancements in our surgical technology. Some of the latest efforts include:

TAVR (Transcatheter aortic valve replacement)
A game changer in cardiac surgery, this minimally invasive procedure involves wedging a replacement valve into the aortic valve space without fully removing the faulty valve, negating the need for open heart surgery.

Mako robotic-arm surgical technology
Mako brings a higher level of precision to joint replacement compared to traditional surgical methods. Mako patients generally have faster recoveries, shorter hospital stays and improved life of the implant.

da Vinci® surgical system
While we’ve used the da Vinci system successfully for many years, we continue to apply it to new surgical specialties, offering greater precision for an increasing number of procedures.

StealthStation™ S8 surgical navigation system
The latest in Stealth surgical technology, the StealthStation S8 system is a combination of hardware, software, tracking algorithms and more to help guide our caregivers during surgical procedures.

We are also looking for CSTs be a part of our team in the Family Birthing Center operating room in Bend. Our St. Charles Bend Family Birthing Center follows baby-friendly guidelines. We have made the commitment to help give babies the best possible start in life through promotion and education around breastfeeding and mother-baby bonding. Connected to the FBC, St. Charles Bend houses the only level III NICU in our service area of 38,000 square miles. Here we provide expert care for fragile newborns nearby as well as babies transferred from hospitals across Central and Eastern Oregon.

You can have the career of your dreams and outdoor activities just beyond your door, all while being part of a vibrant, family-friendly community. We offer nation-leading pay, excellent benefits and relocation assistance for qualified candidates.

You’re not dreaming.

Start your reality here today!

St. Charles Health System is pleased to welcome two new members to its board of directors. J. Corey Schmid and Dr. John Terhes recently joined the board bringing a wealth of knowledge and experience to their positions. 

“We are thrilled to welcome Corey and John to the St. Charles board and appreciate their willingness to share their time and expertise,” said Jamie Orlikoff, St. Charles board chairperson. 

Schmid, a Bend resident, is a general partner at Seven Peaks Ventures and leads the organization’s digital health investment portfolio. She is also a trusted executive innovation advisor and board member to regional health care systems, industry consortiums and startups as a venture capital partner. In addition to her role on the St. Charles board, Schmid serves on the board of directors for Amplion, Inc., is a board observer for Bright.md and is a Junior Achievement volunteer and instructor.

“I am inspired as a community member raising my two boys and building my business here in Bend, to have a positive impact on the health, well-being and sustainability of our most critical service provider, St. Charles Health System,” Schmid said. “We can raise the bar for all of our Central Oregon residents, and I'm honored to be a part of our future.”

Dr. John M. Terhes, a general surgeon in Eugene, brings expertise and passion around patient safety efforts to his board position. He also serves as a committee member for the Northwest Safety and Quality Partnership through the Washington State Hospital Association and Oregon Association of Hospitals and Health Systems and is a board member for the Oregon Research and Education Foundation.

“I hope to help further the transformation of St. Charles Health System by actualizing the goals of zero patient harm, improving accessibility and reducing the total cost of care,” Terhes said. 

In addition to the new members, the St. Charles Board of Directors recently elected its chairperson, vice chairperson and secretary/treasurer for 2020. The new board chairperson is Jamie Orlikoff, president of Orlikoff & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm that specializes in health care governance, leadership, strategy, quality, safety and system development. The new vice chairperson is Megan Haase, CEO of Mosaic Medical, which operates Federally Qualified Health Centers throughout Central Oregon. Tom Sayeg, an attorney with Karnopp-Petersen, will retain his role as secretary/treasurer for another one-year term. Orlikoff will succeed Dan Schuette, who served honorably for five years as chairperson, and Haase will succeed Dennis Dempsey, who served as vice chairperson.

“We are excited to welcome our new board members and we thank Jamie, Megan and Tom for their willingness to take on leadership roles within the board structure,” said Joe Sluka, president and CEO of St. Charles Health System. “I’d also like to thank Dan Schuette and Dennis Dempsey for their many years of steady and prudent board leadership, as well as directors Mack Gardner and Greg Van Pelt for their many years of service and dedication to St. Charles and our communities. Mack and Greg have decided to roll off the board and their passion and expertise will be missed.” 

About St. Charles Health System

St. Charles Health System, Inc., headquartered in Bend, Ore., owns and operates St. Charles Bend, Madras, Prineville and Redmond. It also owns family care clinics in Bend, Madras, Prineville, Redmond and Sisters. St. Charles is a private, not-for-profit Oregon corporation and is the largest employer in Central Oregon with more than 4,500 caregivers. In addition, St. Charles employs over 270 providers, and has more than 800 active and visiting medical staff members who partner with the health system to provide a wide range of care and service to our communities.

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