About 176 people attend Albury Wodonga Health's emergency departments every day, with 4449 more presentations in 2018/19 than the previous year.
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Along with 64,273 presentations in total, the service's 2019 annual report recorded 39,255 inpatients and 1638 babies delivered.
Board chairwoman Nicki Melville hoped work to redevelop the emergency department would begin soon with the support of a $30 million NSW government grant.
"We're bursting at the seams and there's nowhere to go, we have to access that money," she said.
Thursday's annual general meeting recognised several staff members and volunteers for their contributions to Albury Wodonga Health.
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They included director of medicine Franz Eversheim, dental program manager Nicolle Davies, electrician Ian Wicks, clinical education manager Emma Horsfield, dietetics manager Jane Ford and volunteer Jan Dihood.
Ear, nose and throat surgeon Gerard Fogarty received a Royal Australasian College of Surgeons community service award.
Ms Melville noted community members often did not realise Albury Wodonga Health provided dental treatment.
"We have a fantastic public dental service in Wodonga that's meant access for thousands more people than previously," she said.
She praised the service's staff and the 300 volunteers "who can make a heck of a difference to a patient's journey".
"Overall I think it was a really successful year for Albury Wodonga Health but great credit to people for both managing an increased workload but doing that within constrained expenses," she said.
The annual report showed 231 incidents of occupational violence - defined as all incidents, threats and near misses - were reported during 2018/19, with 12 per cent resulting in a staff illness, injury or condition.
In the emergency departments, 67 patients in Albury and 13 in Wodonga stayed longer than 24 hours, which Ms Melville linked to a lack of mental health rehabilitation beds.
