‘This is our busiest we’ve ever been’: St. Charles Bend hits ER capacity amid C.O. summer visitors, emergencies, illnesses

(Update: Adding video, comments from two ER doctors)

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ)-- The summer months bring tourists all across Bend and the High Desert, with small businesses seeing an influx of customers, restaurants with full reservations -- and the St. Charles Bend emergency room also hitting capacities.

Doctors at St. Charles in Bend are dealing with an emergency room regularly at capacity. The hospital is breaking records, with the usual July numbers reached in May.

"This is our busiest we've ever been," said Dr. Marika Gassner, general surgeon at St. Charles Bend. "We see about a 20% increase year after year since 2018, pre-pandemic. We thought that was going to slow down, but it turns out it has not. So those volumes are going up, exponentially,"

More tourists in the summer months mean more injuries. St. Charles is the only Level 2 trauma center east of the Cascades, meaning it's the only hospital where patients receive critical care and surgery. Patients needing Level 1 care are transferred to Portland. 

To deal with the demand, Dr. Katie Richards says the ER has implemented a new method of taking patients.

"When you come into the ER during our peak visits, you'll actually see either a doctor or a PA (physician assistant) quite quick in your care, to sort of get some things started in the waiting room before you even a bed is available," Richards said.

The doctors point to motor vehicle accidents as the most common cause of injuries, along with recreational accidents from mountain biking, swimming and other warm-weather activities. During the summer, surgeons will stay on call.

Gassner said, "The limiting factor is operating rooms and surgeons. So we have now 10 surgeons on our team. It's a pretty big team for this size hospital, but we stay extremely busy running an operating room, between trauma and emergency general surgery every day."

During our hour-long visit, multiple ambulances arrived, as well as an emergency helicopter.

The St. Charles doctors have some advice before heading to the ER. If you're outside, be sure to know your resources, like a location if you're hiking, stay vigilant and drive safely without distractions.

Gassner said, "We've never had a problem getting folks in, but it is very, very difficult to predict."

St. Charles also has a chart online to determine if your symptoms require your primary care doctor, urgent care or the ER. You can find that list at http://www.stcharleshealthcare.org.