March 2026
Providence Willamette Falls Medical Center has opened a new short-stay unit designed with direct input from the nurses who care for patients every day — expanding capacity while keeping comfort and dignity at the center of the experience.
The unit opened at the end of January and reflects months of collaboration between nursing staff and hospital leaders, ensuring the space supports both caregivers and the people they serve.
Designed by nurses, centered on patients
From the earliest planning stages, nurses helped shape nearly every detail of the unit, creating a space that feels intuitive, thoughtful and patient-focused.
“We have been planning and drawing it and having the nurses that are working here 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 want to put the blood pressure cuffs,” says Meredith Rueda, the unit’s nurse manager, in a local news story with KPTV.
“So it was a fun project to work alongside the caregivers here and design it ourselves.”
A smoother, more seamless experience
The new unit features mobile, motorized equipment — including beds and computers on wheels — allowing caregivers to move efficiently and focus more fully on each patient’s needs.
“Because we designed every aspect of this room and the whole unit, we are efficient in getting patients in and out more smoothly,” charge nurse Joni Hanson says to KPTV.
That efficiency translates into shorter waits, clearer communication and a more seamless experience for patients moving through short-stay care.
Expanding access across the hospital
With the short-stay unit now open, the previous space will be converted to add inpatient capacity, helping ease demand in other areas of the hospital, including the emergency department.
Hospital leaders estimate the expansion will allow Providence Willamette Falls Medical Center to perform 1,000 additional surgeries each year — improving access to care for the growing Oregon City and southeast metro communities.
“When you are in a space where the staff helped design it, you can just focus on the patient,” Joni says.
Meredith agrees, explaining to KPTV how the unit reflects Providence’s commitment to relationship-centered care.
“It’s that relationship with the patients that is most important, and this facilitates us to do that even better,” she says.
Related
- See the coverage on KPTV.
- See more of our services at Providence Willamette Falls Medical Center.
- Read a report on Becker's Hospital Review.
