The story of St. Charles began in 1918 when the first hospital in Bend officially opened on the banks of the Deschutes River. It started with five Sisters of St. Joseph whose mission was to care for all or care for none. The current location of the Bend hospital opened in 1975. It became a community, nonprofit organization in the 1970s and maintained an affiliation with the Catholic Church until February 2010. The spirit of compassionate caring first fostered by the Sisters of St. Joseph is alive and well at St. Charles today.
Celebrating a centennial
With four hospitals and more than 220 employed medical providers, St. Charles Health System is the largest provider of medical care in Central Oregon. We take our role in our communities seriously and have pledged to work with our partners to achieve our vision: Creating America’s healthiest community, together.
Visit stcharleshealthcare.org
When the sisters took it over, they were told they could only take care of the workers and they said 'no, we take care of everyone or we take care of no one.'
Sister Catherine Hellmann
Our Stories
The story of St. Charles is the story of people. After 100 years in Central Oregon, this organization has called several buildings home. Each one has been important in its time. People, however, built the foundation of trust and the tradition of caring that continues today and into the future.
No matter how far
Health care doesn’t just happen in our hospitals. We have caregivers visiting the far reaches of our 32,000-square-mile service area to bring medical care to those in our rural communities.
Big Moments
This place is full of big moments. Of split second decisions that make the difference between things not going well, and everything working out perfectly. This is a spacer line.
Our history
Follow our timeline during the past 100 years.
Our story began on a cold, bright
Christmas morning in 1917 when five nuns boarded a train in Indiana and headed west.
The Great Depression and World War II. These were our hardest years.
New programs lead St. Charles in its transition from a community hospital to a regional medical center.
New approaches to health care focus on better health.
Community Acts of Caring
To celebrate our centennial anniversary and give back to our community, we are asking our caregivers and community members to join us in monthly community acts of caring. The goal with the program is to donate quantities of 100 (or more) of the monthly item to the campus-specific beneficiary. A donation barrel will be placed at each campus and remain there throughout the year. These barrels will serve as the collection place for the monthly item. Each barrel will include information about the item and its beneficiary for that month.
Contact Us
Feel free to contact us to provide some feedback on our website or to contribute to our story.