A Message from Rebecca McGregor
Will you help will create something remarkable? The very first Senior Friendly Emergency Unit in British Columbia.
Dear friend
If you’ve ever waited in an emergency room, you know the truth.
The wait can be too long.
And when you are sick, or scared, or in pain, every extra minute feels like an eternity.
That’s the reality for too many people in our community, especially our seniors.
Right now, as you probably know, our emergency department is overcrowded. Patients often wait long hours just to be assessed. Sometimes they wait days for a hospital bed. For elderly patients who are already frail, already vulnerable, this is more than frustrating. It can be dangerous.
In the past two years we see a daily average of 65 patients over the age of 65 years old. Those that are admitted often stay 30 hours in the emergency department before they are moved to another department. The stretchers and mattresses we have are hard and cause the risk of pressure sores on frail elderly skin.
I grew up in Nanaimo, it’s where I went to school to become a nurse, and I love this community. My parents live here. My siblings and my children are here. This is home, and as a nurse I want the best care for everyone. I want you, your family and every person here—especially our elders—to have the care they deserve.
That’s why I’m writing to you today. As a generous donor to Nanaimo Hospital, I know you care about this. And we have a solution.
If you join with your neighbours, with a donation today, then the Nanaimo Hospital will be able to build and equip a new Senior Friendly Emergency Unit.
Everyone in our community will benefit because this special unit will solve two problems:
- It will give seniors the specialized care they need;
- It will take pressure off our regular emergency department.
It’s a simple idea. And the positive impact will be huge.
Think about what this will mean. Instead of waiting in crowded hallways, seniors will come into a calm, welcoming space. Instead of bright lights and loud noises that make confusion worse, there will be softer lighting, reduced noise, and more privacy.
Instead of struggling with stretchers and beds built for younger patients, there will be equipment designed for older bodies—chairs that help people stand, stretchers that go low enough for frail elders to get on easily.
And, most important of all, the staff will be specially trained in geriatrics. Nurses, doctors, therapists, all with expertise in helping seniors.
Our seniors will get better and safer care. Care that helps them recover faster and return home to their loved ones, sooner.
Your donation will help buy the specialized equipment our seniors need.
For example:
- We’d like to buy comfort carts that include activities like puzzles and games to help reduce stress. The cost of one comfort cart is $300.
- We need 10 beds with pressure relief mattresses. Each one costs $11,200. Just 10 gifts of $1,120 will help buy one.
- Our elderly patients require comfortable reclining chairs that lift them safely. These chairs cost $9,700 each and we need 10 of them.
I’ll never forget one woman I saw in the ER. She was 4’9”. She tried to climb onto a stretcher, but it was too high. She couldn’t do it. She was embarrassed. She was in pain. And she needed help with something so basic—just getting onto a bed.
I also had a family member who had to spend days in the emergency hallway on a stretcher. It made me feel helpless as a care provider. It was devastating to watch this happen to my own family member along with many of our elderly patients.
The truth is, most emergency departments aren’t built for seniors. But with your help today, we can change that.
The Senior Friendly Emergency Unit is about more than comfort.
Research shows that crowded, noisy emergency rooms can actually make seniors sicker. They can trigger delirium. They can speed up dementia. They can increase stress and slow recovery.
Almost 30% of our population here in Nanaimo Oceanside is 65 years or older! And… our emergency unit is busiest on Vancouver Island with 68,000 visits per year, 35% of which are seniors.
That’s why creating this new unit is so urgent.
When seniors come into this new quieter, more comforting space, they will feel cared for. They will feel safe. And they will heal faster. The unit will also be double the size of the current one.
You know, this will also help thousands of families in our community. Instead of children watching a loved one suffer in a crowded ER, they’ll see them cared for in a calm, dignified environment.
And here’s something else. This new unit will help attract specialists in geriatrics to our community. Doctors and nurses who want to work in a modern, innovative space. That benefits everyone in the greater Nanaimo area.
You know as well as I do that our community is growing. You see it all around you. And with more seniors than ever, we must prepare now.
We are looking to our donors and our community to help raise $1.2M to build and equip the new Senior Friendly Emergency Unit. So please, will you make a special year-end gift today?
Your generosity will help solve the problem of overcrowding in our emergency department and give seniors the specialized care they need.
I know you care deeply about your neighbours. You’ve shown it with your caring gifts. And I’m asking you to show it again—because this project matters.
Think of the elders in your life. You want them to get the best care. This new unit will be here for them. For each one of us. Every single day of the year.
Please, make your gift today.
Thank you for caring so much. Thank you for standing with our elders. And thank you for helping build a healthier, stronger community.
With gratitude,
Rebecca McGregor
Clinical Operations Director – NRGH
