Pictured above from left: Dana Bennet, Elliot Coughlin, Erin Olsen and Marian Morris-Evrin

St. Charles celebrates extraordinary nursing with DAISY Awards

Four nurses from St. Charles Health System recently were honored DAISY Awards for Extraordinary Nurses, recognizing the outstanding, compassionate nursing care they provide patients and families every day.

The nurses, who represent all four St. Charles hospitals in Bend, Redmond, Madras and Prineville, were recognized with a ceremony on their respective units and presented with a certificate, a pin and a "healer's touch" sculpture by their hospital’s chief nursing officer. The honorees are:

• Dana Bennett, a behavioral health nurse in Bend, who is known for rising to meet every challenge and her ability to serve every patient with compassion, dignity and respect;
   
• Elliot Coughlin, a medical services nurse in Redmond, who was honored by the family of a former patient for Coughlin’s ability to be understanding, while giving respect and compassion to help retain the patient’s dignity;
   
• Marian Morris-Evrin, a case management nurse in Madras, who is known for her strong advocacy for patients in her care, community connections and her desire to work tirelessly to provide what’s best for patients; and
   
• Erin Olsen, a medical services nurse in Redmond, who was honored for her compassionate care, critical thinking skills and extraordinary clinical excellence.

About the DAISY Awards:

The DAISY Foundation is a not-for-profit organization that was established in memory of J. Patrick Barnes by members of his family. Patrick died at the age of 33 in late 1999 from complications of Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP), a little known but not uncommon auto-immune disease. (DAISY is an acronym for Diseases Attacking the Immune System.) The care Patrick and his family received from nurses while he was ill inspired this unique means of thanking nurses for making a profound difference in the lives of their patients and patient families.

This is one initiative of The DAISY Foundation to express gratitude to the nursing profession. Additionally, DAISY offers J. Patrick Barnes Grants for Nursing Research and Evidence-Based Practice Projects, The DAISY Faculty Award to honor inspiring faculty members in schools and colleges of nursing and The DAISY in Training Award for nursing students. More information is available at http://DAISYfoundation.org.

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, La Pine 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, there are more than 350 active medical staff members and nearly 200 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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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

BEND – St. Charles Health System is pleased to announce that after two very full days and nights of bargaining we have reached a tentative agreement with the Oregon Nurses Association on a new three-and-a-half-year contract for the Bend hospital nurses.

As part of the agreement, the ONA has withdrawn its 10-day strike notice and will work alongside St. Charles leaders to communicate the details of the contract with frontline nurses. The more than 950 nurses in the Bend ONA bargaining unit will have the opportunity to vote to ratify the new contract in the coming weeks.
 

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, La Pine 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, there are more than 350 active medical staff members and nearly 200 visiting medical staff members who partner with the health system to provide a wide range of care and service to our communities.

St. Charles to focus on reducing loneliness, fostering belonging through funding priority

Effort coincides with U.S. Surgeon General initiative to combat loneliness

Today, St. Charles Health System is announcing a new focus for its Community Benefit funding: reducing feelings of loneliness and social isolation while fostering a sense of belonging among Central Oregonians. This priority funding area means that, for the next three years, St. Charles will direct thousands in grant funding to community organizations to target loneliness and isolation.

“We are increasingly seeing that loneliness and depression are root causes of a number of health problems and societal problems, and the pandemic has only exacerbated that issue,” said Molly Wells Darling, administrative director of Behavioral Health Services for St. Charles. “If we can help people feel less lonely by connecting with others and becoming part of a community, we know that Central Oregon will be healthier community.”

The announcement of this priority funding area comes alongside U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy’s introduction of a new initiative to combat loneliness and isolation, writing in an op-ed in the New York Times that this must be a “top public health priority” for the country.

“We need to acknowledge the loneliness and isolation that millions are experiencing and the grave consequences for our mental health, physical health and collective well-being,” wrote Murthy.

St. Charles leadership believes access to mental health care is a major need in Central Oregon. As part of the Community Benefit program, the health system will partner with local organizations working to address loneliness, social isolation and belonging to capitalize on the energy that surrounds the subject. The Community Benefit department will dedicate grant dollars to groups that are trying to provide opportunities to decrease feelings of loneliness and social isolation in communities across the region. Exactly how that looks will be up to the individual communities, according to Carlos Salcedo, manager of community partnerships for St. Charles.

“Our hope is that each community will choose where to focus their time and energy around this issue. Maybe one will focus on older adults while another focuses on supporting youth or new parents finding community,” he said. “St. Charles may find itself supporting communities in a variety of ways, such as offering financial assistance for projects identified by the community or providing relevant research to enable people to move forward in redefining what it means to be part of a community in Central Oregon.”

Reducing feelings of loneliness and social isolation while fostering a sense of belonging was identified as a priority based on the 2023-2025 Community Health Needs Assessment, which brought together population health data, input from community members, community survey results and analysis of available community resources to address health needs.

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, La Pine 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, there are more than 350 active medical staff members and nearly 200 visiting medical staff members who partner with the health system to provide a wide range of care and service to our communities.

St. Charles Health System committed to retaining, recruiting health professionals

BEND, Ore. – St. Charles Health System leaders would like patients and community members to be aware that the Oregon Nurses Association plans to hold an informational rally from 3 to 8 p.m. today near the Bend hospital campus at 2500 NE Neff Road. The group has committed to a peaceful gathering on public sidewalks and rights of way that will not obstruct pedestrians or traffic. Patient care, patient and visitor parking and access to the hospital should not be impacted.

“We agree with the ONA about the importance of retaining and recruiting health care professionals and are happy to report that despite a national shortage of nurses we have been making significant progress,” said Julie Ostrom, service line administrator for trauma and surgical services and a member of the St. Charles bargaining team. “Over the past nine months, we have hired more new caregivers than we have lost to turnover in that timeframe and we have reduced the number of open nursing positions at the Bend hospital to 80. In addition, a recent $5 hourly wage increase for all bedside nurses puts St. Charles wages at the second highest in the state (for an average annual full-time salary of $108,000 a year). We respect our nurses for the difficult job they do caring for our patients and community and are proud to offer a competitive pay and benefit package.”

Turnover among Bend nursing staff is also declining, and in 2022 St. Charles Bend reported its lowest turnover rate among nursing staff in the past three years (14.5% turnover in 2022, compared with a national average of 22.5% turnover for RNs, according to NSI Nursing Solutions). St. Charles and Bend nurses represented by the ONA have met to bargain an updated contract 10 times with many more negotiation sessions scheduled throughout May and June. 

“We are very much looking forward to reaching an agreement in these contract negotiations and are working hard toward that goal,” Ostrom said. “In the meantime, our focus remains on providing high quality patient care to our Central Oregon community.”    

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, La Pine 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, there are more than 350 active medical staff members and nearly 200 visiting medical staff members who partner with the health system to provide a wide range of care and service to our communities.

St. Charles, OHSU seek participants for PATHFINDER 2 early cancer detection study 

A partnership between St. Charles and the Oregon Health & Science University’s Knight Cancer Institute aims to find 6,000 Oregonians who will choose a chance at early cancer detection by enrolling in the PATHFINDER 2 study, happening now across our state. The study’s goal is to improve early cancer detection and, ultimately, save lives. 

The PATHFINDER 2 study is not a treatment study. The purpose of this study is to understand the performance and safety of a blood test for early detection of a signal shared by multiple cancers. It is a follow up to the initial PATHFINDER 1 study on a broader scale, including people from diverse and underrepresented populations. This is an opportunity for rural Oregonians to be part of the development of cancer detection strategies. 

The test is being studied and is not approved or cleared by the Food and Drug Administration. It is not meant to replace cancer screening tests your health care provider may recommend, such as colonoscopy or mammography. 

The OHSU Knight Cancer institute was selected as one of 32 sites nationally for the study, and OHSU has partnered with hospitals and health systems in Coos Bay, Hood River, The Dalles, Salem and Central Oregon in an effort to reach people outside the Portland area. 

The Pathfinder 2 study is open to those who: 

• Are 50 or older and 
• Have never been diagnosed with cancer or 
• Have been cancer-free at least three years. 

Participants will be asked to give a blood sample drawn by a trained practitioner, provide medical history and complete some questionnaires. More information is here. Participants who enroll in the study will receive the test at no cost. 

“People don’t like having their blood drawn or thinking about cancer impacting their lives, and we understand that,” said Cindy Shuman, the clinical research coordinator who is overseeing the study for St. Charles. “But too often, cancer isn’t found until it’s advanced and harder to treat, and that’s why studies like this are important – so we can improve early detection. At the same time, participants will feel more informed about their own health and will enjoy the peace of mind that comes with that.” 

You can learn more about enrolling through St. Charles by contacting

OHSU Pathfinder Study
(503) 418-8150
[email protected]

St. Charles Research
541-706-2909
[email protected]

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, La Pine 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, there are more than 350 active medical staff members and nearly 200 visiting medical staff members who partner with the health system to provide a wide range of care and service to our communities.

St. Charles Health System names Dr. Steve Gordon president and CEO

BEND, Ore. – St. Charles Health System’s Board of Directors is pleased to announce that Dr. Steve Gordon has accepted the position of president and CEO for the health system on a permanent basis. Dr. Gordon has been serving as interim president and CEO since July.

“The board has been very appreciative of Steve’s leadership and desired to have him become the permanent CEO,” said Jamie Orlikoff, chairman of the St. Charles Board of Directors. “We are thrilled that he has accepted the position. We look forward to a productive partnership with him for the benefit of the community and our patients.”

Gordon is an experienced health care executive and former member of the St. Charles Board of Directors. A primary care and internal medicine physician by training, he has served in executive leadership roles for PeaceHealth in Vancouver, Wash., Providence Health and Services in Portland and Salem Health. He is a graduate of Harvard College, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Kennedy School of Government.

“I am energized to build on what we’ve learned so far from service line development in many areas of the organization. Plenty of work still lies ahead, but we’re seeing results from focusing first on clinical excellence and a better experience for our patients, caregivers, physicians and providers,” Gordon said. “I have enjoyed getting to know this extraordinary organization in a new and deeper way in recent months. We simply have the best people who are committed to providing patients with exceptional care. I want to continue supporting them in that noble endeavor.”

Over the past seven months, Gordon has launched a new service-line focused structure that groups and manages services that support a patient throughout their health care journey. Under his leadership, the health system realized improved financial performance for the second half of 2022 and is committed to returning to a positive operating margin by the end of 2023. Retaining highly experienced caregivers and working to recruit new permanent staff are among his top priorities.

Working with an external search firm, the St. Charles Board conducted a survey along with small group and individual meetings with a variety of identified stakeholders to determine the attributes most desired in the next health system CEO. The top qualities identified by more than 1,600 St. Charles caregivers and community partners were compassion for patients and staff, experience as a direct health care provider and visibility and presence across all sites of care and in the communities St. Charles serves.

“During this interim period, Steve has naturally embodied these attributes making him easily the top choice for the position,” said Ann Rhoads, chair of the board’s CEO search committee. “We heard repeatedly from the listening sessions that caregivers, physicians and community partners would be thrilled to see Steve in the role for the long term. We believe he is the best person to lead St. Charles into the future and that he will drive the system to provide excellence in care, service and organizational culture.”

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, La Pine 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, there are more than 350 active medical staff members and nearly 200 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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St. Charles Health System announces cancer center expansion in Redmond

BEND, Ore. – More than 40% of patients treated at the St. Charles Cancer Center in Bend travel from Redmond, Madras, Prineville and other rural communities for their care. If they need radiation as part of their treatment, this can mean traveling more than 50 miles for services multiple days in a row for weeks at a time.

“We know that many of our patients travel farther than patients at other cancer centers in the country for their care,” said Dr. Linyee Chang, medical director of the St. Charles Cancer Center. “Some patients opt out of treatment because of the travel and that’s not OK.”

To better meet the needs of these patients, St. Charles Health System is excited to announce plans to expand cancer services in Redmond.   

Using $90 million secured through bonds in the fall of 2020 that are restricted and must be used for new construction, St. Charles will build a new cancer center on the St. Charles Redmond campus at the corner of Canal Boulevard and Kingwood Avenue.

“The announcement of a world-class cancer center to be constructed here at the St. Charles hospital in Redmond is a milestone event in the history of our community,” said Redmond Mayor Ed Fitch. “I want to express our deep appreciation to the St. Charles Board of Directors for its commitment to the health care needs of Redmond as well as the other communities this center will serve. The city and the community will do all we can to help facilitate this project and the future expansion of health care services here in Redmond.” 

The facility will include a linear accelerator to provide radiation oncology treatments, along with space for chemotherapy treatments, nutrition, massage, acupuncture and other support services. It will also include space for additional outpatient services and medical office building needs.

“As the health care industry continues to face significant challenges, we are looking to maximize the efficiency of the services we provide to ensure we continue meeting the most critical needs of our Central Oregon communities,” said Dr. Steve Gordon, interim president and CEO of St. Charles. “We are making a significant investment in ambulatory services on the Redmond campus that will ultimately provide better access to care for patients.”

Building design is underway and ground was broken on the project in the summer of 2024. Currently, the facility is slated to open in 2026.

View preliminary site plan

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, La Pine 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, there are more than 350 active medical staff members and nearly 200 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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* NOTE: Attached is a photo of the honorees. Identification, from left to right: Kirsten Chavez, Hillary Dunbar, Labree Tolman, Samantha Martin.

St. Charles nurses honored with DAISY Award for outstanding, compassionate care

The following St. Charles Health System nurses have been honored with The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses®, recognizing the outstanding, compassionate nursing care they provide patients and families every day:

• Bend: Kirsten Chavez, Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
• Madras: Labree Tolman, Emergency Department
• Prineville: Samantha Martin, Medical Services
• Redmond: Hillary Dunbar, Medical Services

Nominated by patients, families and colleagues, the award recipients were chosen by a committee at St. Charles.

The nurses—who represent all four St. Charles hospitals in Bend, Redmond, Madras and Prineville—were recognized with a ceremony on their respective units and presented with a certificate, a pin and a "healer's touch" sculpture by their hospital’s chief nursing officer. The DAISY honorees will also receive ongoing benefits, such as special rates for tuition and ANCC certification.

The DAISY Foundation is a not-for-profit organization that was established in memory of J. Patrick Barnes by members of his family. Patrick died at the age of 33 in late 1999 from complications of Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP), a little known but not uncommon auto-immune disease. (DAISY is an acronym for Diseases Attacking the Immune System.) The care Patrick and his family received from nurses while he was ill inspired this unique means of thanking nurses for making a profound difference in the lives of their patients and patient families.

"When Patrick was critically ill, our family experienced first-hand the remarkable skill and care nurses provide patients every day and night,” said Bonnie Barnes, FAAN, president and co-founder of The DAISY Foundation. “Yet these unsung heroes are seldom recognized for the super-human, extraordinary, compassionate work they do. The kind of work the nurses at St. Charles are called on to do every day epitomizes the purpose of The DAISY Award.”

This is one initiative of The DAISY Foundation to express gratitude to the nursing profession. Additionally, DAISY offers J. Patrick Barnes Grants for Nursing Research and Evidence-Based Practice Projects, The DAISY Faculty Award to honor inspiring faculty members in schools and colleges of nursing and The DAISY in Training Award for nursing students. More information is available at http://DAISYfoundation.org.

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, La Pine, 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 4,200 caregivers. In addition, there are more than 350 active medical staff members and nearly 200 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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St. Charles Health System joins Oregon hospitals in charging the state with violating civil rights of vulnerable patients

BEND, Ore. – In a move to protect the civil rights of vulnerable Oregonians, St. Charles Health System, based in Bend, Oregon, has joined Legacy Health, Providence Health & Services and PeaceHealth in a lawsuit against the Oregon Health Authority. The lawsuit, filed in September, aims to ensure the Oregon Health Authority fulfills its legal obligation to provide adequate mental health treatment capacity for civilly committed individuals.

The addition of St. Charles broadens the coalition, bringing representation from the largest health system east of the Cascades.

“Because the state is often refusing to take responsibility for civilly committed patients, we believe this patient population is not getting the care it deserves. The current situation is not good for the patients, our staff or the other patients we serve,” said Dr. Shane Coleman, clinical division director of psychiatry and behavioral health for St. Charles. “By joining this lawsuit, we hope OHA will hear our concerns and take action to build more capacity to serve these patients in an appropriate health care facility for the level of care they need.”

Under Oregon law, individuals who are a danger to themselves or others may be civilly committed by the state for involuntary treatment for up to 180 days. Acute care hospitals are often the first stop for many patients who require urgent care and short-term stabilization. Once that is achieved, the state is legally required to place these individuals in a facility that specializes in long-term treatment, such as secure treatment facilities or the Oregon State Hospital, and that can give them the appropriate and necessary care to enable them to regain their liberty.  

Rather than transfer these individuals to an appropriate facility, the state is confining them in community hospitals for weeks or months. Community hospitals are not equipped, staffed or designed to provide long-term mental health treatment. The behavioral health units in these hospitals are intended to serve the community as acute care facilities where patients in mental health crisis can be evaluated, stabilized and discharged to the next appropriate level of care. 

The Oregon Health Authority has not only failed in its responsibility to its most vulnerable population, but by relying on acute care hospitals, OHA has negatively affected the hospitals’ capacity to care for other patients experiencing acute mental health crises in their communities. Oregon is in the middle of an unprecedented mental health crisis, and community hospitals are desperately needed to treat and stabilize other vulnerable patients in crisis, many of whom are also struggling with substance abuse disorders and houselessness. 

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, La Pine 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, there are more than 350 active medical staff members and nearly 200 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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St. Charles hosts medication take-back event Oct. 29 at Bend Police Department

BEND, Ore. – St. Charles Health System is hosting a medication take-back event on Saturday, Oct. 29, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Bend Police Department at 555 NE 15th St.

The take-back event is intended to help households dispose of medications that could be ingested by someone other than the person for whom they were prescribed and to prevent medications from ending up in the water table. In 2021, St. Charles collected 427 pounds of medication from more than 300 community members. The health system is pleased to be able to provide this opportunity, as other community drops sites have not been accessible due to COVID-19 safety measures.

No questions will be asked. Individuals can drive through the parking lot and drop off medications right from their car window. Bend police officers will accept the medications, then give them to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to dispose of safely.

Any non-oncology medications will be accepted. Liquids, pills, powders, patches, creams, prescriptions or over-the-counter medicines can be dropped off. Representatives from St. Charles pharmacy will also be on-site to answer questions.

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, La Pine, 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, there are more than 350 active medical staff members and nearly 200 visiting medical staff members who partner with the health system to provide a wide range of care and service to our communities.

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, La Pine, 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, there are more than 350 active medical staff members and nearly 200 visiting medical staff members who partner with the health system to provide a wide range of care and service to our communities.