Remote Surveillance Trailer in Oregon City, OR

OREGON CITY, Ore. (KPTV) — Providence Willamette Falls Medical Center has opened a new short stay unit, an expansion hospital staff said will increase capacity and help nurses work more efficiently.

The unit opened at the end of January. Nurses who work in the unit helped design parts of the space, including the head wall layout and where items such as hand sanitizer and blood pressure cuffs would be placed.

“It’s just fantastic to have a light bright clean new unit,” short stay unit nurse manager Meredith Rueda said.

Rueda said nurses were involved in planning and drawing the unit.

“We have been planning and drawing it and having the nurses that are working here with the patients figure out how do we want to design the head wall for the patients, where do we want to put the hand sanitizer, where do we wanna put the blood pressure cuffs, so it was a fun project to work alongside the caregivers here and design it ourselves,” Rueda said.

Charge nurse Joni Hanson said staff were asked for input during the design process, which was different from past projects.

“They would be like, OK, this is the head board, where do you want your baskets? Questions I’ve never been ask before. Everything has just already been in place before,” Hanson said.

One feature nurses said they like is that equipment, including computers and beds, is on wheels.

“Because we designed every little detail of this room and the whole unit, we are efficient in getting patients in and out more smoothly. Everything is brand new so everything actually has motors in it so they can move quicker,” Hanson said.

Hospital staff said the expansion is also helping other parts of the medical center. The former short stay unit is being used to add inpatient capacity, which they said will help decrease wait times in other departments, including the emergency room.

“If you have a space that has everything that you need that you’ve designed, you don’t have to think about those details, you can just focus on the patient,” Hanson said.

With the expansion, Willamette Falls Medical Center said it can perform about 1,000 more surgeries each year to keep up with demand in Oregon City and the southeast metro area.

“It’s that relationship with the patients that is most important and this facilitates us to be able to do that even better,” Rueda said.

Bend, a central Oregon city known for attracting outdoor enthusiasts, has been named one of the United States' best up-and-coming cities by a major TV network.

HGTV created its list using information from the U.S. Census Bureau and a report by the Milken Institute that tracks which small cities display the most economic growth, increased jobs and wages, housing affordability, and access to broadband.

Bend's population has doubled in the past 25 years and was recognized for its outdoor recreational activities and its local brewery scene.

Here's what to know about Bend and why it's one of the best up-and-coming small cities in America.

Bend named to HGTV's list of the 30 best up-and-coming small cities

Bend appeared in the No. 12 spot on HGTV's list of the best up-and-coming small cities.

"It’s easy to fall for Bend and never want to return home," HGTV said. "In recent years, Bend has attracted remote workers drawn in by plentiful recreation opportunities and natural beauty."

The network recognized Bend for attractions that include its craft brewing scene along the Bend Ale Trail, popular summer recreational activities like tubing and paddling on the Deschutes River, and in-town scenic hikes like the one leading up to Pilot Butte State Park.

Mount Bachelor, 20 miles west of Bend, was also noted as a driving force behind Bend's growth for its ski and snowboarding activities. Mount Bachelor is the seventh largest ski resort in North America and has more than 4,323 skiable acres.

How much has Bend's population grown during the last 25 years?

Bend's population has doubled during the past 25 years.

In 2000, Bend's population was reported at 52,029, according to a count by the city. By 2010, the city's population had grown by 47% to 76,639 residents. The next decade saw another 29% increase in Bend's population, growing to 99,178 residents.

As of 2023, Bend's reported population was 104,557, more than double what it was 25 years ago, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

What cities appeared on HGTV's list of the 30 Best Up-and-Coming Small Cities in America?

Here is HGTV's full list of the 30 Best Up-and-Coming Small Cities in America:

Ginnie Sandoval is the Oregon Connect reporter for the Statesman Journal. Sandoval can be reached at or on X atGinnieSandoval.