OREGON CITY, OR – The leadership of Willamette Falls Hospital in Oregon City, Ore., has approved an agreement to join Providence Health and Services, a not-for-profit health system with facilities in Alaska, Washington, Montana, Oregon and California.

Providence has pledged to employ all Willamette Falls employees in good standing when the affiliation is complete. More than 800 full- and part-time employees work at the hospital and outlying facilities.

"It's taken a lot of planning to get here and we are very pleased to be able to announce this agreement," said Willamette Falls CEO Russ Reinhard. "Partnering with Providence enables us to preserve and strengthen our commitment to this community in a rapidly changing healthcare environment. Our patients will benefit from expanded choices in medical staff and specialties, as well as wider access to advanced medical technology in key areas like oncology and cardiology."

The next steps include regulatory evaluations; until these are completed, the organizations will remain separate. Once regulatory approval has been received, Willamette Falls Hospital will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Providence Health and Services.

This will then be reflected in the facility's new name: Providence Willamette Falls Medical Center.

"Willamette Falls first considered joining the Providence system last year, well before the economic downturn," Reinhard said. "The recession places even greater importance to the community on this partnering."