Skip to main content

nurses

Update on PPE Donations for NRGH

By News

There has been a great response and profound goodwill in trying to source community supplies of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). Thank you!

In order to focus everybody’s efforts, Nanaimo Regional General Hospital (NRGH) is asking the public to contact Bill Earthy at William.Earthy@viha.ca in Facilities, Maintenance & Operations at NRGH prior to making a donation. To manage email volume, please put “Community PPE” in the subject line. This is to try to avoid multiple non-coordinated efforts throughout the community and to minimize confusion. NRGH will then coordinate deliveries to the hospital on a controlled basis. Once confirmed, donations can be dropped off to: 3151 Barons Road, Nanaimo on Tuesdays and Thursdays between 10:00 am to 2:00 pm only.

Items that are welcomed include: 

  • N95 masks
  • Surgical masks
  • Procedure masks
  • Procedure masks with shields
  • Goggles
  • Gloves
  • Disposable Gowns
  • Hand santizer
  • Wipes

Currently, NRGH is not accepting homemade mask and cloth gowns.

Thank you for supporting your local hospital and the incredible staff who continue to deliver excellent patient care!

Variety Continues Support of Families in Need

By Thank You!

Thank you to the Variety – The Children’s Charity of BC for their recent commitment of $9,000 to support children and their families who must travel to Nanaimo to receive medical care at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital. No family should ever face a financial burden so their child can get the medical care they need. Grants from Variety help lower income families cover travel costs so they can focus on supporting their child and not worrying about how to pay the bills.

The grants help cover the costs of accommodation, food, transportation and specialty items such as car seats for premature babies. Their generosity helps many families each year and, to date, Variety has donated over $750,000 to support better healthcare for children living in Central Vancouver Island! We are so very grateful.

Photo: Members of the Perinatal, NICU and Paediatric Departments at NRGH. Front row: Pat, Deborah, Shannon, Alix, Wendy & Colleen. Back row: Carolyn, Trina, Vanessa, Kathy, Alesha, Lizzy, Cassidy & Emily

Continuing Education for Oncology Nurses

By Medical Staff Education
Keeping up with the latest knowledge in any discipline can be a challenge and medicine is no exception. We are committed to helping the incredible medical staff at NRGH provide the best patient care possible by funding participation in eligible workshops, conferences and other educational opportunities. The Hospital Foundation and medical staff are grateful to our donors who help us fund this important investment in healthcare for our community.
“On behalf of Rachel Gaskell and myself, Mercede Lander, we send a deep felt and appreciative thank you to the foundation for supporting our participation in the Canadian Association of Nurses in Oncology (CANO) conference in Winnipeg, Manitoba Oct 20-23, 2019.
The annual CANO conference provides us with valuable and applicable education and professional development specific to oncological care. Rachel and I were able to learn the latest best practice from experts in all aspects of oncology nursing, which in turn we are providing in service presentations to our colleagues at the Nanaimo Cancer Clinic leading to better care for our patients.”
Photo, from left to right, Mercede Lander, RN, BScN, CON (C); Linda Watson, President, CANO; Rachel Gaskell, RN, BScN

Starlight & Toys “R” Us Support Kids in Hospital

By Thank You!

The Nanaimo & District Hospital Foundation is grateful to once again receive $2,000 from the Toys “R”Us | Babies“R”Us Canada grant program! The funds will help stock the Treasure Chest in the Paediatrics Department at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital (NRGH). The Treasure Chest toys provide a much-needed distraction for children of all ages, from toddlers to teens, while they receive medical care at the hospital. The toys can help patients face the stress of treatment or alleviate the boredom of waiting for the next appointment.

In the past year, thanks to Starlight Children’s Foundation Canada and Toys“R”Us | Babies“R”Us Canada , NRGH has also received a Hospital Grant, Comfort Kits, Baby Kits, Baby & Toddler Kits, NICU/PICU Resources and other support for NRGH patients and their families. It would not be possible to provide all of these items without their funding. Their contributions are a valuable component of patient comfort and care for our young patients at NRGH.

The Nanaimo & District Hospital Foundation is among 85 charities who received funding from the Toys“R”Us | Babies“R”Us Canada grant program to support distractive entertainment for hospitalized children. Nationally, tens of thousands of seriously ill and hospitalized children will benefit through other grant programs including the distribution of 7,000 Emergency Room Admit Kits; 10,000 Baby & Toddler Kits; and equipment for 100 NICU/PICU’s across Canada. Learn more about these and other incredible programs on Starlight’s website at https://www.starlightcanada.org/our-programs/

All of this is possible due the commitment and effort of Toys“R”Us and Starlight. Since introducing their fundraising program during 1998’s holiday season, Toys“R”Us Canada has been able to raise more than $20 million dollars for Starlight, supporting hundreds of thousands of during that time! In 2019, the eleventh year of the TRU grant program, over $1,000,000 has been distributed to hospitals across Canada.

Thank you Toys“R”Us | Babies“R”Us Canada and Starlight Children’s Foundation Canada for your generosity and support!

Chix with Stix Support Nurse Education

By Thank You!

Thank you to the Chix with Stix Dragon Boat Team for their generous $1,500 donation.

Their donation is in honour of Holly Martina Vermeulen Paquette who passed away at the age of 9 months on January 10, 2019 as a result of complications from Influenza A. Chix paddler Amanda is Holly’s aunt and a former nurse at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital. The donation will support nurses’ education in paediatrics critical care.

Their donation was raised through a combination of Paddlers’ annual dues and sponsorship contributions. To date, they have donated over $30,000 to support multiple areas of care for our community. We are grateful for their commitment and give our condolences to Holly’s extended family.

Photo: Janet Povey & Heather Mitchell

Investing in Nurse Education

By Medical Staff Education
Ongoing education is an important component of patient care. The Hospital Foundation is delighted to share an update on our latest investment in education for our amazing paediatric nursing staff at NRGH.
“I would like to thank the Nanaimo Hospital Foundation for their generosity in supplying 8 tickets for Nurses to attend this year’s Parent Child Conference in Nanaimo. This is the first year it was opened up to nursing and we were well represented thanks largely to the Foundation.
The topics and speakers were phenomenal. There were two fully packed days with talks from the role of antimicrobials in Asthma, harm reduction, implementing skin to skin contact at caesarian births, antibiotic use during pregnancy and lactation, hyperglycemia in Newborns to name only a few. All of the topics were so relevant to our every day practice and were well received and attended by our perinatal staff and providers from all over Vancouver Island.
We had 16 nurses total attend the conference 8 of those tickets were funded by the Foundation. Each of those staff are sharing the knowledge they gained with their peers who were unable to attend so our whole team has benefited.” Trina Knight, Manager, NRGH
Left front: Elizabeth O’Keef-Batta, Erin MacDonald, Pam Gardiner, Kathy Clark, Elizabeth Carlson, Joelle Pattern
Left back: Juanita Parsonage, Kristina Maguire, Melissa Gasson, Iris Halbach, Katherine Robinson, Alisha Pelletier, Trina Knight
Missing in the photo : Janice Bertoia, Jennifer Duncan and Jenny Williams

Baby Sim

By News, Thank You!

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!

Sim Baby

There are very advanced teaching tools available for medical professionals to ensure they can provide the best care possible to patients of all ages. This Sim Baby is just one example. It is so advanced, they can program different scenarios via a laptp that enable nurses and doctors to practice advanced techniques and the "baby" will react to the treatment they are giving it. From variable heart rates, change in skin colour, vocalizations, limb movement, stomach distention and so much more, Sim Baby is incredible. Due to the generousity of a donor, the Nanaimo & District Hospital Foundation was able to fund the Sim Baby!

Posted by Nanaimo & District Hospital Foundation on Friday, September 13, 2019

Kudos for NRGH Staff

By Kudos

We are honoured to raise funds in support of the incredible work being done on a daily basis throughout NRGH and other care facilities so we love to share feedback from patients and their families about the great care they receive. Well done 4th Floor!

“Just taking a moment to give a big shout out to your nurses and staff at Nanaimo General. I was in there yesterday on the fourth floor and had wait in the hall for a few minutes while the nurse cared for my dad. There was a sweet elderly woman sitting in a wheelchair singing happy birthday over and over. Sometimes the staff sang along, sometimes she was solo but the nurses told me that she had caught wind of it being someone’s birthday on the floor and it was her way of hinting for cake. After a few choruses, one of the nurses passed me and she was speaking softly to herself how she was so busy and couldn’t really spare the time, but oh well.

A minute later she returned with cake and sat and fed it to the lovely singing patient. We have always received exemplary care at this hospital but I know others that have their issues with it however I have to applaud them for that single moment today. As busy as that young nurse was, she took a few moments to show kindness and consideration for that sweet old lady. Thank you to all the nurses and support staff for everything you do, it doesn’t go unnoticed!!!”