This year marks our second annual “Top Docs” feature, in which we highlight some of the amazing work our local health care providers are doing both inside and outside the exam room. The people featured here are well-respected in their fields, but they are also known to go “above and beyond” the call of duty to volunteer, establish new programs and so much more. Inside, meet longtime family practice doctor and Volunteers in Medine volunteer, Dr. Steven Knapp, and get to know the cover model and pediatrics specialist, Sarah Benrath, PNP-BC, MPH, MSN, who offers rare care in eating disorders for local youth. Learn about Dr. Maya Heck’s efforts to support youth mental health, and read why young patients love visiting Dr. Nancy Heavilin and Dr. John Peoples. Their stories are below – read on! 

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Top Docs of Central Oregon

by The Source Staff, The Source - Bend, Oregon
October 14, 2026

<h1>Top Docs of Central Oregon</h1> <p class="byline">by The Source Staff, The Source - Bend, Oregon <br />October 14, 2026</p> <p>This year marks our second annual "Top Docs" feature, in which we highlight some of the amazing work our local health care providers are doing both inside and outside the exam room. The people featured here are well-respected in their fields, but they are also known to go "above and beyond" the call of duty to volunteer, establish new programs and so much more. Inside, meet longtime family practice doctor and Volunteers in Medine volunteer, Dr. Steven Knapp, and get to know the cover model and pediatrics specialist, Sarah Benrath, PNP-BC, MPH, MSN, who offers rare care in eating disorders for local youth. Learn about Dr. Maya Heck's efforts to support youth mental health, and read why young patients love visiting Dr. Nancy Heavilin and Dr. John Peoples. Their stories are below – read on! </p> <h3 class="wp-block-heading has-text-align-center"><strong>Click the story photos to read more</strong></h3> <div class="wp-block-columns"> <div class="wp-block-column"> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://www.bendsource.com/news/localnews/top-docs-steven-knapp-md/"><img src="https://www.bendsource.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Steven-1024x769.png" alt="" class="wp-image-102522" /></a></figure> </p></div> <div class="wp-block-column"> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://www.bendsource.com/news/localnews/top-docs-sarah-benrath-pnp-bc-mph-msn/"><img src="https://www.bendsource.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/sarah-2-1024x768.png" alt="" class="wp-image-102494" /></a></figure> </p></div> </p></div> <div class="wp-block-columns"> <div class="wp-block-column"> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://www.bendsource.com/news/localnews/top-docs-nancy-heavilin-md/"><img src="https://www.bendsource.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/nancy-1024x768.png" alt="" class="wp-image-102515" /></a></figure> </p></div> <div class="wp-block-column"> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://www.bendsource.com/news/localnews/top-docs-john-peoples-md/"><img src="https://www.bendsource.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/John-1-1024x768.png" alt="" class="wp-image-102498" /></a></figure> </p></div> </p></div> <div class="wp-block-columns"> <div class="wp-block-column"> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://www.bendsource.com/news/localnews/top-docs-maya-heck-md/"><img src="https://www.bendsource.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Maya-1024x769.png" alt="" class="wp-image-102527" /></a></figure> </p></div> <div class="wp-block-column"></div> </p></div> <h3 class="wp-block-heading has-text-align-center"><strong>Check out our Digital Edition!</strong></h3> <figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-large"><a href="https://issuu.com/thesourceweekly/docs/the_source_october_15_2026"><img src="https://www.bendsource.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/10152026-775x1024.png" alt="" class="wp-image-102485" /></a></figure> <p>This &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://www.bendsource.com/news/top-docs-of-central-oregon-2/&quot;&gt;article&lt;/a&gt; first appeared on &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://www.bendsource.com&quot;&gt;The Source - Bend, Oregon&lt;/a&gt; and is republished here under a &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/&quot;&gt;Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;img src=&quot;https://i0.wp.com/www.bendsource.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/cropped-Untitled-design-4.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;amp;ssl=1&quot; style=&quot;width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;&quot;&gt;</p> &lt;img id=&quot;republication-tracker-tool-source&quot; src=&quot;https://www.bendsource.com/?republication-pixel=true&amp;post=102534&quot; style=&quot;width:1px;height:1px;&quot;&gt;&lt;script&gt; PARSELY = { autotrack: false, onload: function() { PARSELY.beacon.trackPageView({ url: &quot;https://www.bendsource.com/news/top-docs-of-central-oregon-2/&quot;, urlref: window.location.href }); } } &lt;/script&gt; &lt;script id=&quot;parsely-cfg&quot; src=&quot;//cdn.parsely.com/keys/bendsource.com/p.js&quot;&gt;&lt;/script&gt;

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