Rural hospitals are the backbone of medical care in this country and have been facing increasing challenges in recent years. Blue Mountain Hospital District (BMHD) has been facing and overcoming these challenges and is an exemplary care provider in Grant County, Oregon. With over 70 years of service, Blue Mountain Hospital District offers a wide range of facilities and specialties with nearly 300 employees and providers.

BMHD was built in Prairie City in 1949 and was rebuilt in John Day in 1960 as a part of the Blue Mountain Hospital District. The hospital district is a nonprofit organization managed by a local Board of Directors, and also includes Blue Mountain Care Center, a 40-bed intermediate care facility in Prairie City.

The mission of BMHD is to “provide quality health care close to home” and their vision is to “be the primary choice for compassionate, caring, and quality health care”. Toward this end, the people of BMHD constantly strive to maintain their core values of integrity, honesty, kindness, and consideration for the community by providing dignified, comfortable and competent patient care focusing on patient safety and customer satisfaction.

BMHD currently has a general surgeon on staff, as well as several family practice physicians and nurse practitioners. They participate in the Oregon Health Sciences University family practice residency program that rotates residents and interns through the community on a regular basis. The hospital itself is staffed with mostly ACLS and trauma-certified nurses. The facility includes three IMCU beds, two recently remodeled birthing suites, and two surgery suites that provide inpatient and outpatient same-day surgeries. Blue Mountain Hospital is a Level IV trauma center in the Oregon State Trauma System with 24-hour emergency coverage. Medical evacuation is also provided to tertiary care centers by Air Link of Oregon and Life Flight with a helipad on site. BMHD also has an ambulance service staffed with employees as well as volunteer EMTs and paramedics.

Blue Mountain Hospital has a surgery clinic with a Board-certified general surgeon and a rural health family practice clinic, Strawberry Wilderness Community Clinic, staffed by family physicians and nurse practitioners. Monthly specialty clinics are also offered by urologists, ophthalmologists, cardiologists, podiatrists, and dermatologists. They also offer home health and hospice service.

Five years ago, Blue Mountain Hospital District partnered with the Grant County Chamber of Commerce to offer “Grant County Greenbacks” to their staff. These are gift certificates taken to the next level available in denominations of $5, $15, and $25. These “Greenbacks” can be spent at over 40 businesses who are members of the Chamber throughout the county ranging from grocery stores and gas stations to restaurants and assorted shops. They are given to staff and volunteers at the hospital district as bonuses, holiday presents, and for extraordinary service. Over the last two years, the hospital has provided over $35,000 in Grant County Greenbacks to happy recipients. Grant County Greenbacks are just one of many perks of working at BMHD. Cam Marlowe, BMHD’s CEO, encourages other employers and individuals throughout the county to drop by the Chamber office to purchase greenbacks. “If you are an employer it is a great way to recognize employees and if you are an individual it is a fun way to give a gift that supports local businesses and our economy”.

The Blue Mountain Hospital District Board of Directors, who serve as volunteers without compensation, is elected by the people of Grant County, and represents all areas of the county. They set policy and direction for the District, including approving and reviewing the District’s budget and quality reports.

Playing a vital role in Blue Mountain Hospital being one of the most modern rural hospitals in Oregon, The Blue Mountain Heathcare Foundation is governed by a volunteer board of local residents. As a separate tax-exempt entity, donations to the foundation are tax deductible.

Cam states that going forward, the hospital district wants to “continue to build upon the strengths that already exist in the hospital, clinic, EMS, home health/hospice, and care center services that BMHD offers.” He emphasizes that in this challenging local and national environment where many rural/frontier hospitals are reducing their services (i.e. nursing home, assisted living, home health, hospice, labor and delivery, etc.) in order to keep their remaining services open, “BMHD continues to work closely with our department leaders, communities, local, regional, and state leaders, to not only be able to maintain the services we currently offer, but to expand services in the short-term and for decades to come.”

With the forward-looking vision of the Board and CEO Cam Marlowe, along with the dedication of the providers and staff, Blue Mountain Hospital District is poised to carry on its mission of providing quality health care close to home in a compassionate, caring, and considerate manner for years to come.