Bigfork Valley
Community Hospital · Bigfork, MN
A rural Minnesota hospital district where community roots run deep but management reviews lag
See 1 open role- 1
- open role, live count
- 20
- beds
On the floor
What the day-to-day looks like
Nurses report to the Director of Nursing in a small, rural team environment spanning acute care, emergency services, surgical services, a medical clinic, pharmacy, and long-term care at The Lodge, which is connected to the main hospital. Reviewers consistently value the community-oriented atmosphere and coworker bonds, while some Indeed and Glassdoor reviewers cite frustration with leadership and work-life balance. The organization offers health insurance with HSA and employer contributions, dental and vision coverage, no-cost basic life insurance and long-term disability, a 457(b) retirement plan with employer match after one year, PTO, an Employee Assistance Program, experience pay, and shift differentials. Medicare rates the nursing home as 'much above average.' The facility is owned and governed by the Northern Itasca Hospital District, a public entity formed under Minnesota statute in 1975.
- Setting
- Community Hospital
What stands out
Experienced nurses
You would work at a critical access hospital that has landed NRHA Top 20 patient-satisfaction recognition across many years from 2012 through 2025.
As of 2025Source 1: bigforkvalley.orgSource 2: allnurses.com
Moving here
In Bigfork you step into a small publicly owned campus that has long mixed hospital beds with on-site nursing-home care, including a refurbished Tamarack long-term care unit.
Source 1: talents.vaia.comSource 2: bigforkvalley.orgSource 3: mprnews.org
Experienced nurses
Our one posting here shows $36.70 an hour, so the pay picture is clear even if the sample is thin.
From employer postingsAs of 2026-07-23
Experienced nurses
Emergency work sits under a CALS designation the hospital has renewed, including in 2016 and 2020.
As of 2020Source: bigforkvalley.org
More about working here
Experienced nurses
Through a collaboration with Community Memorial Hospital you can see local ortho cases such as arthroscopic shoulder and knee work, ACL repair, and total shoulder replacement.
New graduates
An LPN listing here points to growth opportunities, ongoing training, and a person-centered culture, though a formal RN residency is not described.
As of 2026Source: talents.vaia.com
Moving here
Bigfork is framed as an urban-suburban mix where most people own homes, with plenty of bars in town and a generally conservative lean.
Starting out and growing here
- Career development
- LPN listing cites opportunities for growth and ongoing training; person-centered culture
As of 2026Source: talents.vaia.com
Who they are
Bigfork Valley operates a combined hospital and long-term care campus in northern Itasca County, offering nurses a close-knit, small-team setting with a comprehensive benefits package. Employee reviews are mixed—culture and coworkers get praise, but management scores lowest on Indeed and work-life balance lands at a middling 3.0.
- Community Hospital · Bigfork, MN
More about Bigfork Valley
Person-centered culture and ongoing training are named on an LPN listing; community benefit work has included a health magazine recognized by the Minnesota Hospital Association.
Working here
Culture and working life
Themes from public reviews
Summaries of published reviews, with the original sources.
- No nurse reviews available
- allnurses page shows no nurse reviews yet for culture or staffing experience.
As of 2026Source: allnurses.com
- Low RN staffing ratio signal
- Third-party CMS-derived grade F staffing with 0.20 RN per bed may concern applicants about workload.
As of 2026Source: allnurses.com
What to weigh
Third-party CMS-derived staffing shows about 0.20 RN per bed and a grade F mark, and the allnurses page still has no nurse reviews you can lean on.
As of 2026Source: allnurses.com
The reality check
Before you decide
Quick facts
- Relationship
- Direct employer
- Roles last seen active
- Jun 19, 2026
- Website
- bigforkvalley.org ↗
Weighing a first job here?
The license clock and the job hunt run at once, and new-grad windows do the deciding. Residency commitments carry fine print worth reading before you sign.
Work here?
This page is built from public postings and employer research. Help us get it right: corrections, photos, and the story of the floor itself.
Improve this page →The units
A closer look at the units
Open counts come from the live roles below. Source links show where unit details were reported.
- Geriatric1 open
Long Term Care
Employer seeks RN for Long Term Care Unit; LPN role is elder/community nursing under DON; Tamarack Unit refurbished.
Source location unconfirmedSource 1: talents.vaia.comSource 2: bigforkvalley.org
Hospital (Critical Access)
allnurses/CMS-derived: CAH, CMS grade F staffing, 4 RNs, daily census 1, 2.7 day ALOS, 99 annual discharges.
Source location unconfirmedSource: allnurses.com
Nursing home / LTC beds
2011 report: Bigfork Valley had 20 hospital beds plus 40 nursing home beds; publicly owned.
Source location unconfirmedSource: mprnews.org
Orthopedics / surgical
With CMH: arthroscopic shoulder/knee, ACL repair, endoscopic carpal tunnel, total shoulder replacement offered.
Source location unconfirmedSource: bigforkvalley.org
Emergency
CALS designation for continuing emergency skills improvement; renewed 2016 and 2020.
Source location unconfirmedSource: bigforkvalley.org
Rehabilitation
Facility has a Rehabilitation Department (staff tenure noted in news).
Source location unconfirmedSource: bigforkvalley.org
Open roles
Current openings at Bigfork Valley
Refreshed throughout the day.
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