New Prineville hospital on track to open next fall

Construction at the new St. Charles hospital in Prineville is in full swing, and officials said Monday the project is on track to open in September 2015.

“As you can see, the building is going up quickly, and now they’re starting to do a lot of the finishing work inside,” said Jeanie Gentry, CEO of St. Charles hospitals in Prineville and Madras. “We’re excited. It will be done in July and we’re planning to move in September.”

The building will replace the 1950s Pioneer Memorial Hospital. The aging infrastructure means renovating the old hospital would have been significantly more expensive than building a new one.

“Patients want good care, but they also want lower costs. So this is part of our effort here at St Charles to lower our costs,” Gentry said.

In an effort to save money, the new hospital is going to be 30 percent smaller than the current one. Physicians won’t have their own rooms any more; rather, the hospital is structured to provide a lot of open space. The idea is to promote teamwork.

“The doctors and the nurses and the medical assistants, all work in a big open area where they can collaborate and work together as a team,” Gentry said.

St. Charles officials believe the hospital will not only benefit patients, but all Prineville residents.