

There are incredible teaching tools available to hospitals and Sim Baby is one of them! This advanced simulator is incredible – different scenarios can be programmed via laptop to simulate real-life health issues and the baby reacts accordingly. From variable heart rates and stomach distention to limb movement and vocalizations, the medical staff training on the Sim Baby are able to practice complicated scenarios with realistic feedback so they can provide even better care for the littlest of our patients.
Due to the generosity of a donor, the Nanaimo & District Hospital Foundation was able to fund the Baby Sim for the Paediatric Department. The department hosted a “baby shower” complete with cake to celebrate the addition of this state of the art teaching device and to thank the donor!
Due to the generosity of many donors, the Nanaimo & District Hospital Foundation was able to commit to over $3.8 million in funding to NRGH and the other care facilities it supports in the last fiscal year! The donations help fund medical equipment, patient comfort items, staff education and large projects such as the cardiac expansion at NRGH and Oceanside.
Read about some of the highlights over the past year on our news feed.
Thank you also to Dr. Rudston-Brown who was our guest speaker at our recent donor event where the photo was taken. He spoke about the importance of access to colonoscopies, why they are integral to our long-term health and the impact the new procedural suite in the Endoscopy Department at NRGH will have once it is built. Read about the colonoscopy campaign here.
Photo: Janice Perrino, CEO, Hospital Foundation; Dr. Blair Rudston Brown, Chief of Staff, NRGH; Sarah Sheridan, Temporary Director – Special Projects Surgical Services, NRGH; Moira Jenkins, Vice Chair, Hospital Foundation Board; Marci Ekland, Site Director, NRGH; Dr. Ben Williams, Executive Medical Director, GEO 2
Throughout the year, the Nanaimo & District Hospital Foundation provides funding for a wide variety of equipment and patient comfort items for NRGH, Oceanside Health Centre in Parksville and three care facilities.
With the generous support of individual, corporate and community donors, here are some of the items the Hospital Foundation has been able to fund. Click on the linked items below to learn more and visit our news feed or our Facebook page regularly for more updates as they happen.
The Hospital Foundation also funds continuing education so medical staff have access to the latest knowledge and techniques to improve patient care. Recently funded courses:
Top Photo: RN’s in the Advanced Cardiac course
Top Left: Dr.Nataranjan with an Echocardiograph Ultrasound Unit
Middle Left: O.R. Teaching Mannequin
Bottom Left: RN’s Laura Miskulin & Sheri Shanahan with the new NICU Washer and Dryer
The Nanaimo & District Hospital Foundation supports leading edge care by funding professional development for medical staff. Whether it is a broader toolkit to assist patients in psychiatric or palliative care or advancements in post-surgical care, the Hospital Foundation is committed to funding relevant, transferable and innovative learning to support better health outcomes for patients.
With constant advancements in healthcare knowledge and techniques, continuing education is essential in all areas of care. For example, emergency nursing care of a child with an acute illness or injury requires special knowledge and skills. Wanting to be able to deliver the best care possible to young patients, RNs at NRGH recently took an Emergency Nursing Paediatric Course (ENPC). The ENPC, an intensive two-day course with an expert instructor, provides the core-level paediatric knowledge and psychomotor skills (skills where movement and thinking are combined) needed to care for paediatric patients in the emergency setting. And the staff appreciate the impact of ongoing learning including the greater depth and breadth of knowledge that improves the care they can provide to patients on a daily basis.
“ENPC provides an opportunity to practice hands on skills and also offers valuable information and education specific to caring for Paediatric patients and their families. This course and the instructors offered great examples and suggestions that I will be able to implement in my nursing practice and share with other Paediatric team members. It was a truly valuable course experience and I am grateful for the opportunity to be included.” Carly Tarr, RN, NICU/Paediatrics
As a Pediatric nurse, the ENPC course is extremely important in our continued learning. For me personally, I feel more confident in the care that I give my patients along with feeling more prepared for emergent situations. Nikki Adshead, RN, Paediatrics
I have been a nurse for 10 years, with the past 4 years at NRGH. ENPC is an excellent course with lots of hands-on practice. It has helped me feel more prepared and confident in recognizing and treating an acutely ill child. Eileen Bergstreser, RN, Paediatrics
The Hospital Foundation is grateful to our generous donors whose gifts enable the funding of such important continuing education.
Photo: Andree Lineker, Leslie Sundby (instructor), Andrea Bertulli, Jamie Derksen, Clayton Brocklehurst, Eileen Bergstreser, Nikki Adshead, Carly Tarr, Jill Holt, Shannon Scarisbrick