Oregon psych clinic eases pressure of hospital behavioral unit closure

Coos Bay, Ore.-based Bay Area Hospital is closing its behavioral health unit and laying off staff after posting a $5 million net loss in March, CBS affiliate KPIC reported June 3.

Nearby North Bend, Ore.-based Waterfall Clinic is aiming to pick up some of the slack, the report said. The clinic has already hired Robert Gerber, MD, the hospital's former head of psychiatry, and is pushing to open a psychiatric cooperative.

Dr. Gerber will serve as Waterfall Clinic's psychiatry program manager, the report said.

The clinic is interviewing and hiring candidates to accommodate the influx of demand for care, chief innovation officer Lance Nelson told KPIC.

"We'll be asked to do more with patients who are ultimately more mentally ill than the typical patients we see," Mr. Nelson said.

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